When Lev Parnas appeared on prime-time cable news programs this week to say President Donald Trump, U.S. Attorney General William Barr and others were on board with his work in Ukraine to secure the announcement of an investigation into Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden, using aid appropriated by Congress as leverage, a man was seated next to him, addressing the interviewers infrequently.

That was Joseph Bondy, a Manhattan-based lawyer with variegated and colorful legal expertise. Here are a few facts that will help you get to know an attorney in the news:

  • Bondy is a Manhattan-based criminal defense and cannabis business attorney who has been practicing for more than two decades.
  • Named by High Times magazine as “one of the nation’s preeminent cannabis attorneys,” Bondy recently won two CBD processing licenses for clients in New York State’s highly competitive application process, and secured a settlement on behalf of a group of cannabis investors.
  • He is also a member of the pro bono legal team in Washington v. Barr, a pending lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of federal cannabis laws.
  • A native New Yorker, Bondy is a graduate of Columbia University and Brooklyn Law School, and currently serves on the faculty of Cardozo Law School’s Intensive Trial Advocacy Program.