Dan Smith is vice president of VS Strategies. He is based in Boston, where he also serves of counsel at Vicente LLP.
Dan focuses on high-level cannabis policy analysis, helping businesses, trade associations, nonprofits, and governments evaluate and shape cannabis laws and regulations across the U.S. and around the globe. He came to VSS from the office of state Sen. Patricia Jehlen, who served as Senate chair of the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy. As legislative director and general counsel, Dan managed all of the Committee's legislative work, including H. 3818, which created the statutory framework for adult-use cannabis in Massachusetts and codified much of the state's medical cannabis program. During that process, Dan met with stakeholders and experts from across the country, drafted much of the language that was signed into law, and was part of the team that negotiated the final compromise.
Dan also successfully shepherded many other pieces of legislation through the Legislature, particularly in the areas of criminal justice and labor and employment law. He was one of the primary strategists behind a groundbreaking equal pay law, which received widespread press coverage and inspired similar efforts in many other states and Congress.