Resources

Client Alerts, News Articles, Blog Posts, & Multimedia

Everything you need to know about BMD and the industry.

Get to Know BMD: Michael Sneeringer

Blog Post
August 13, 2024

Our “Get to Know BMD” series introduces you to the professionals who drive our firm’s success. We delve into the personal and professional stories of our team members, exploring their career paths, practice areas, and the passions that inspire their work. Get to Know BMD in this spotlight with Cleveland Member Michael Sneeringer.

What inspired you to choose a career in law?

My undergraduate Professor, Dr. Joseph DiSarro, thought I should look into law school. I did and thought it could be something worth pursuing. 

What is your practice area and why did you choose it?

Estate Planning. I chose this area because my law Professor, Jerry Hesch, exposed me to some of the trust cases in this area and gave me a stack of books while I was a law student. They were interesting; so much so, I pursued an LLM in Estate Planning.

What do you enjoy most about practicing law?

I enjoy meeting new clients for the first time and learning their personal stories, and the intellectually stimulating conversations I have with other attorneys.

If you weren’t a lawyer, what alternative career path do you think you might have pursued?

I would have been a chief-of-staff/executive assistant for someone important in politics, worked in the foreign services, or worked somewhere in the sport of water polo.

What was your first job ever, and what did it teach you that you still use in your legal career today?

I was a busser and dishwasher at the Red River Roadhouse at the Millcreek Mall in Erie, Pennsylvania. It taught me that restaurant workers are tough people and that I was not cut out for the restaurant industry or manual labor. 

Outside of the legal world, what is one skill or talent you possess that might surprise your colleagues?

I am very good at domestic housework. I keep the dishes clean and the laundry caught up. I enjoy cleaning out a clutter-filled room and not telling my wife when things have been thrown away. 

What’s a recent book you read or podcast you listened to that you would recommend?

I listen weekly to The Right Time with Bomani Jones. He recently had Mina Kimes as a guest, and they had a stimulating conversation about NFL football. They also discussed the length of time it took them to solve the New York Times crossword puzzle. 

What is one goal you’ve set for yourself this year, professionally or personally?

To attend as many of my daughter, Bellamy's, middle school volleyball games as I can. 

Michael can be reached at masneeringer@bmdllc.com. Learn more about our attorneys by visiting https://www.bmdllc.com/team/.

Get to Know BMDMichael Sneeringer
Client Alert, Blog Post

Explosive Growth in Pot of Gold Opportunity for Bank (and Other) Cannabis Lenders Driving Erosion of the Barriers

May 13, 2022Our original article on bank lending to the cannabis industry anticipated that the convergence of interest between banks and the cannabis industry would draw more and larger banks to the industry. Banks were awash in liquidity with limited deployment options, while bankable cannabis businesses had rapidly growing needs for more and lower cost credit. Since then, the pot of gold opportunity for banks to lend into the cannabis industry has grown exponentially due to a combination of market constraints on equity causing a dramatic shift to debt and the ever-increasing capital needs of one of the country’s fastest growing industries. At the same time, hurdles to entry of new banks are being systematically cleared as the yellow brick road to the cannabis industry’s access to the financial markets is being paved, brick by brick, by the progressively increasing number and size of banks that are now entering the market.Blog Post

Celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

May 1, 2022In recognition of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPI Heritage Month), Brennan Manna and Diamond is proud to recognize the contributions and achievements of our AAPI members.Blog Post

Fluresh Cannabis’ Bank Loan: Moving Into the Mainstream

April 18, 2022The announcement by Fluresh, a vertically integrated Michigan based cannabis business, of the closing of loans from a federally insured commercial bank totaling almost $50 million represents an important landmark for both Fluresh and the cannabis industry writ large. For Fluresh, perhaps as important as the bottom-line benefits of lower cost financing, the fact that its operations and financials passed muster with a substantial commercial bank can be regarded as an important rite of passage. For the industry, it reflects its inexorable movement out of the shadows and into the mainstream. This substantiates the view that, whether or not any of pending the federal legislation is enacted, bank lending to the cannabis industry will continue to accelerate.Blog Post

Out of the Shadows | An Investor Summit Recap

February 9, 2022After a COVID hiatus of more than 2 years, I rejoined the institutional cannabis investment speaker circuit, offering the closing remarks at the Kahner Global Cannabis Private Investment Summit in Coral Gables, Florida. My remarks addressed how banking developments are increasingly impacting cannabis investment, operating and financial strategies and decisions, for both plant touching and the growing array of ancillary businesses serving the industry.Blog Post

BMD Announced in Best Law Firms 2022 List

November 4, 2021We are excited to announce that BMD is included in the 2022 Edition of U.S. News – Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms,” recognized for professional excellence with consistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. The full firm report is included.
Older posts
Newer posts