Joshua Horn ’93

When Joshua “Josh” Horn ’93 looks back on the moment that reshaped his career, it wasn’t in a courtroom. It was on a hiking trip to Colorado.

At the time, Horn was deep into commercial litigation, handling complex cases and long hours. After two decades in practice, he felt the weight of an intense stretch of litigation and began thinking about what might come next. During a 2014 trip to Boulder with his wife, he stepped into a newly legal recreational cannabis dispensary out of curiosity.

As they walked out, his wife offered a simple suggestion: what if he pivoted in his career?

That question sparked a reinvention.

Today, Horn is a partner at Fox Rothschild LLP and co-chair of the firm’s Cannabis Law practice. Recognized by Chambers USA among the nation’s leading cannabis attorneys, he leads a national team advising companies across one of the most complex regulatory landscapes in the country. His clients range from multistate operators to emerging cannabis and hemp businesses navigating licensing, mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings, enforcement actions and compliance.

His path to that national platform began growing up in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. After studying government at Skidmore College, Horn enrolled at Widener University Commonwealth Law School with a clear goal: to build a career as an attorney.

What he says stayed with him most from law school was not a single class, but a skill set.

“The most important thing I got out of law school was learning how to think differently,” Horn said. “How to spot an issue and figure out potential ways to address it.”

He credits the IRAC method, which stands for issue, rule, application and conclusion, with shaping how he analyzes problems. That structured way of thinking continues to guide his work in a field defined by regulatory nuance and evolving rules.

In 1996, Horn joined Fox Rothschild as a commercial litigator. Over time, his work increasingly involved regulated industries, broker-dealer defense, securities enforcement matters, and financial services litigation. That regulatory focus became the foundation for what came next.

When he formally pivoted to cannabis law in 2015, the industry was still emerging in many states. Horn immersed himself in the regulatory frameworks developing across the country and proposed building a dedicated cannabis practice at his firm. With the support of firm leadership, he helped establish what has become a nationally recognized team.

Cannabis law, Horn explains, is not a narrow specialty. Because cannabis remains federally illegal while many states operate medical or adult-use programs, attorneys must navigate overlapping and sometimes conflicting regulations.
“It’s a highly regulated industry,” he said. “If you’re doing an acquisition or raising capital, you have to take those regulations into account. That’s where I focus.”

Over the years, Horn and his team have guided companies through multistate compliance challenges, helped clients secure significant financing and advised on major acquisitions. They’ve also worked with businesses on the other side of the life cycle, assisting with restructurings, asset sales and enforcement matters.

“It’s the life cycle of an industry,” he said. “We’ve worked with companies at every stage.”

As the legal landscape continues to evolve, Horn believes the next decade will bring significant shifts, particularly if federal rescheduling or descheduling occurs. Regardless of the path forward, he sees continued opportunity for lawyers who understand regulatory systems and can adapt quickly.

Ask Horn what he’d tell a law student mapping out a career, and he doesn’t offer a rigid blueprint. He talks instead about flexibility.

“Expose yourself to different areas,” he said. “Keep an open mind. Don’t be afraid to reinvent yourself.”
He also encourages students to pursue experiential learning opportunities, such as clinics and externships, which provide practical, real-world exposure in lower-risk environments.

Mentorship, he says, has also been critical to his success. One of his most influential mentors, Fox Rothschild Partner and Chair Emeritus Abe Reich, offered advice that stuck: “Read the rules.” For Horn, that meant doing the groundwork before asking questions and learning how to find answers independently.

Nearly three decades after graduating, Horn has built a national reputation in a field that did not exist when he was in law school. What began as a weekend conversation in Colorado has become a career defined by strategic risk-taking, regulatory fluency, and a willingness to step into emerging spaces.

For Horn, the most meaningful moments are not industry rankings or transactions closed, but client relationships.

“When a client says, ‘I’m grateful you’re in my corner,’ that makes it worthwhile,” he said.

Interview conducted in Spring 2026.