Christopher B. Lynch
About Christopher
Christopher Lynch focuses his practice on representing emerging and established companies operating in highly regulated industries, particularly cannabis, hemp, alcoholic beverages, and solid waste management. Licensed in Washington and California, Christopher has a wide-ranging knowledge of regulations and multijurisdictional proficiencies that allow him to help clients along the West Coast thrive under a complex matrix of laws and regulations. As laws and regulations change and evolve—causing transactions to become increasingly nuanced and sophisticated—Christopher’s ability to provide experienced and knowledgeable counsel across jurisdictions has become all the more important for his clients.
Christopher’s transactional law experience is robust and includes drafting and negotiating franchise agreements and other contracts with local governments, mergers and acquisitions, entity structure and formation, and corporate governance. He regularly negotiates and develops all forms of corporate documents, including license options, purchase and sales agreements, operating and shareholder agreements, and the myriad inter-business contracts that form the matrix of legal assurances that companies need to successfully do business in highly regulated industries.
Christopher’s extensive regulatory knowledge and ability to see beyond the face of the issue at hand gives his clients an advantage when their goals require working with regulatory agencies or state and local governments to develop and interpret policy, rules, and law. As an active member of multiple trade and industry associations, Christopher regularly helps his clients navigate the rulemaking process, drafts and coauthors legislative bills, and counsels his clients on strategic considerations to advance their interests and meet their goals.
Representative Experience
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Regulatory Compliance Plus
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Advise on structuring, negotiation, and drafting of multimillion-dollar agreements for solid waste management services.
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Provide counsel to corporate clients on a wide range of compliance and permitting issues, including cannabis, hemp, liquor, and solid waste management.
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Analyze hundreds of contracts as well as advise on day-to-day operations of corporate clients with regard to an extensive range of regulatory issues and compliance with applicable law.
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Corporate Transactions Plus
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Structure, negotiate, and draft a broad range of transactional documents and contracts, including purchase and sale agreements, services agreements, assignments, and promissory notes between corporate entities and other parties.
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Represent clients in an extended range of mergers and asset acquisitions or sales, including structuring, negotiating, and drafting transactional documents.
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Manage and coordinate complex closings of multimillion-dollar cannabis license sales.
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Rulemaking & Legislative Action Plus
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Draft and coauthor rulemaking petitions and legislative bills to advance client interests in the cannabis industry.
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Lobbied for passage of petitions and bills, including providing public testimony in support at state and local hearings and participating in agency workgroups to develop and interpret law, rules, and policies.
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Activities
- Washington State Bar Association, Member
- Business Law Section, Member
- Cannabis Law Section, Young Lawyer Liaison
- California Bar Association, Member
- Los Angeles County Bar Association, Member
- American Bar Association, Member
- Washington State, Registered Lobbyist
Recognition
- Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® (Seattle, WA)
- Administrative/Regulatory Law, 2024-present
- Selected for inclusion as a Washington Super Lawyer—Rising Star, 2021-present
Insights from Christopher
- The Turbulent History of Cannabis Regulatory Enforcement in Washington State, 31 Cornell J.L. & Pub Pol’y 121 (Fall 2021)
- “At Long Last, FinCEN Offers Much Awaited Guidance Regarding BSA Due Diligence Requirements for Hemp Businesses,” Miller Nash Graham & Dunn, Bank Law Monitor (Jul. 2020)
- “COVID-19: Cannabis Industry Resources,” Miller Nash Graham & Dunn, coauthor (Mar. 2020)
- “Overproduction and Diversion,” Grow Magazine, October 2018
- “Marijuana Product Packaging and Consumer Protection: New Regulations Nationwide,” MJ News, October 2016
- “Transitioning Ownership of Liquor and Cannabis Licenses in WA and OR,” International Business Associates (IBA), Legal Symposium (Mar. 2024)
- “Business Essentials for Cannabis Start-up and Conversion, Cannabis World Congress & Business Exposition (CWNCBExpo), Los Angeles (2018)
- “Obtaining a Cannabis Business License in California,” NBI Seminars (2017)
- Federalism and Federal Tensions in Cannabis, 2017 NBI Seminars
- Protocols for Self-protection: Creating (and Maintaining) a Compliance Program, 2017 NBI Seminars
Outside the Office
Christopher is a devoted gym-goer and avid gamer. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Chris was a USA Weightlifting and CrossFit certified trainer.