With her dyed green hair and a passion for weed, Zoe Lee is not a typical Taiwanese lawyer.
“I was always really interested in cannabis, since I was in school.
Marijuana is classified as a level two drug in Taiwan, the same level as methamphetamine.
Lee, who had originally wanted to train as a commercial lawyer, made a radical career change after spending time in Europe, where she was allowed to smoke and grow cannabis legally.
“Some of them got caught for basically sharing some weed with others, and they were considered as dealing weed,” she said.
Although her friends’ sentences were ultimately deferred, Lee said her friends were “traumatised” from the legal process.
On her return to Taiwan in 2019, Lee, who studied law at the National Taipei University, struck out on her own to become the country’s first “weed-only” lawyer.
Her niche practice has raised eyebrows from others in the sector.
Being Taiwan’s only specialist weed law firm, Lee’s access to Taiwan’s underground weed-using community has yielded unexpected discoveries.
“A lot of people think cannabis users are younger males with higher education, actually that’s not true,” she said.
Lee believes Taiwan’s road to full weed legalisation will take at least a decade.
The social taboo surrounding marijuana use in Taiwan means there is limited understanding of the plant: “People don’t understand… what cannabis is, even in the justice system.
The limited knowledge of cannabis in Taiwan’s judiciary can lead to what Lee says are unjust results.
“I’m trying to bring more knowledge and information back here,” she said.
Lee’s status as one of the most prominent advocates for weed legalisation in Taiwan grew after her first foray into politics last year, when she ran for a seat in the Legislative Yuan as a candidate for the Green Party — a centre-left party focused on environmental issues.
“ a lot of the people who supported the Green Party last year, it was the first time they really went to go vote.
She said public attitude towards pot in Taiwan is changing.
“This time, 1,500 people joined,” she said.
All the subcultures and music… they all talk about weed,” she said, referring to the legalisation of weed in Canada and some US states.
The shift in attitudes towards weed abroad is trickling into Taiwan through social media, Lee said.
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