Erik Carlson
General Counsel
Buckbee Weed Co
Erik Carlson is an attorney and entrepreneur in the hemp and cannabis industries. He is an owner and General Counsel for the Buckbee Weed Co., a vertically-integrated hemp company located in Rockford, Illinois. The company grows, processes and manufactures a wide range of hemp products which it sells through its hemp-infused bakery/coffee shop, Mrs. Buckbee's Wake N Bakery, and hemp-infused bar, Half Baked Bar. Erik is also an owner and General Counsel for Sustainable Innovations, a social equity craft grower and infuser with facilities in Rockford and Skokie, Illinois. Sustainable Innovations provides contract manufacturing, sales and distribution services to out-of-state brands interested in expanding into the Illinois cannabis market.
Prior to entering into the cannabis and hemp industries, Erik was a partner at Brassfield, Krueger & Ramlow in Rockford, Illinois. He worked as a civil litigator, trying cases in Illinois and Wisconsin. His practice focused on personal injury cases and contract disputes. On April 20, 2021, he left his firm to become a fulltime weedsman. Since supposedly leaving the practice of law, Erik has become increasingly involved with advocating for new laws and regulations that will govern the cannabis and hemp industries in Illinois. He works for his own company, and advises others, on how to shape and navigate local and state laws.
For the past several years, he has been actively advocating for better hemp and cannabis legislation in Illinois.