Shay Aaron Gilmore is a cannabis business attorney based in San Francisco who works exclusively with operators and investors throughout the legal California cannabis and hemp supply chains. With over 20 years of experience as a California attorney, Shay advises cannabis and hemp businesses through the complexities of California’s legal markets with a commitment to expanding access to legal, reliably tested, environmentally sustainable, and socially equitable cannabis throughout every corner of California.
Shay’s law practice at The Law Office of Shay Aaron Gilmore includes outside general counsel services for cannabis and hemp operators and investors spanning business formation, financing and governance, commercial transactions, local permitting, state licensing, land use, intellectual property, and regulatory compliance across the cannabis and hemp supply chains. Prior to founding his own firm, Shay practiced law at major national and international law firms and served as in-house corporate counsel in the legal departments of two major financial institutions, providing advice and counsel on corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, commercial transactions, product development, government affairs, corporate litigation, and regulatory compliance matters.
Shay earned a B.A. in Economics from Rice University and a J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law.
Deeply engaged in the cannabis law community, Shay serves on the Board of Directors of the International Cannabis Bar Association, and chairs the California Lawyers Association Cannabis Practitioners Group, which he co-founded. He also co-founded the Cannabis Law Section of the Bar Association of San Francisco, and has served on the San Francisco Cannabis Oversight Committee in the seat designated for an expert in cannabis law and regulation, appointed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Shay has been recognized by The Los Angeles/San Francisco Daily Journal as one of California’s Top 20 Cannabis Lawyers, and Super Lawyers® Magazine has recognized him as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in Northern California. For his work on behalf of indigent clients, the State Bar of California has honored Shay with the Wiley W. Manuel Pro Bono Service Award.