Courtney N. Moran, LL.M., founding Principal of EARTH Law, LLC and Chief Legislative Strategist for Agricultural Hemp Solutions, LLC, expertly champions forward-thinking policy for hemp agribusiness success. She worked closely with the offices of Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) in drafting and negotiating the Hemp Farming Act of 2018 the language included in the 2018 Farm Bill federally legalizing hemp.
Courtney co-authored and is leading efforts on the federal Industrial Hemp Act of 2023 (S. 980, H.R. 3755), with IND Hemp and the National Hemp Association, to reduce regulatory barriers for grain and fiber farmers, support industrial hemp supply chain growth, and expand hemp grain and fiber market opportunities.
She earned her Juris Doctorate from St. Thomas University in Minneapolis, Minnesota. During law school, Courtney interned for Keith Stroup at NORML. She is admitted to practice in Oregon, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.
Courtney began her career practicing medical marijuana patient criminal defense. Appealing a county court’s decision on behalf of her medical patient client, the State of Oregon conceded in State v. Ellis, 260 OR App 174 (2013), that hashish is medical marijuana.
In January 2014, Courtney graduated magna cum laude from Lewis and Clark Law School with a Master of Laws in Environmental and Natural Resources Law, with an emphasis in Industrial Hemp Law.
In the Spring of 2015 Courtney’s article, Industrial Hemp: Canada Exports, United States Imports was published in the Fordham Environmental Law Review.
From 2015 to June 2023, Courtney lobbied for the Oregon Industrial Hemp Farmers Association (OIHFA)/ Oregon Hemp Association (ORHA) to protect Oregon hemp agricultural interests, passing five pro-hemp pieces of legislation and participating in every hemp-related rulemaking within the state. In 2021, OIHFA led the passage of HB 2284 establishing the Oregon Hemp Commodity Commission, and HB 3000 an omnibus cannabis bill that creates the framework for regulating adult-use cannabinoids. Throughout 2022, Courtney served as a Governor Appointee on the HB3000/SB1564 Taskforce on Cannabis-Derived Intoxicants and Illegal Cannabis Production representing hemp farmer interests in Oregon.
She strategically guided the initial implementation of hemp programs in South Carolina, Wisconsin, Alaska, and Missouri. She continues to influence hemp policy development in numerous states throughout the U.S. and federally. In 2021, she led the passage of HB 396 in Montana, authorizing hemp food ingredients as commercial animal feed, opening markets for hemp grain, fiber, and whole plant products.
Courtney successfully litigated the landmark cases KaB, LLC v USPIS (2018) and RNF, LLC v USPIS, MLB 18-113 (2018) establishing the precedent for the shipment of hemp, specifically hemp-derived CBD and viable hemp seeds, through the US Postal Service.
In Fall 2021, Courtney joined the Oaksterdam University Faculty teaching Business of Cannabis: Hemp and CBD. In Spring 2022, she joined the Lewis and Clark Law School Faculty as an adjunct law professor teaching the first Hemp Law Policy course in the U.S.
Internationally, on October 26, 2016, Courtney testified at El Seminario Internacional Perspectivas Legislativas Para La Regulaciόn de la Cannabis No Psicoactiva Para Su Uso Medicinal, Terapéutico e Industrial before the Senado de la República in Mexico City, Mexico. She also participated in the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on the world drug problem in April 2016 on behalf of U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley.
In January 2023, Courtney joined the National Hemp Association Board of Directors as Legislative Counsel. She also serves on the NORML Board of Directors Emeritus Board, the Oregon State Bar Cannabis and Psychedelics Law Section Executive Committee, the National Hemp Association Standing Committee of Hemp Organizations, and the International Cannabis Bar Association Advisory Board.
Courtney was voted by the HIA membership as the 2018 Hemp Industries Association Advocate of the Year. She was also awarded as Hemp History Week’s Leading Grassroots Advocate. Courtney was celebrated by Capital Press newspaper as the Western Innovator: Leading the ‘green rush.’ She is a sought-after attorney, lobbyist, guest lecturer, and speaker.
During his keynote presentation at the 2019 Western U.S. Hemp Growers Conference & Expo in Portland, Oregon, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden acknowledged “In a sentence, we would not have hemp legalization without Courtney”.