Company: IIPR
Filing Date: 2025-04-29
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0001104659-25-041241
Chunk: 34

Company: INNOVATIVE INDUSTRIAL PROPERTIES INC
Filing Date: 2025-04-29
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 34
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 (5) any shares of our stock owned by FW Cook or members of their consulting team that serves the compensation committee; and (6) any business or personal relationships between our executive officers and 23 TABLE OF CONTENTS FW Cook or members of their consulting team that serves the compensation committee. After discussing these factors, facts and circumstances, the compensation committee affirmed the independent status of FW Cook and concluded that there are no conflicts of interest with respect to FW Cook. Our executive chairman and chief executive officer typically attend compensation committee meetings, except for executive sessions (unless specifically requested by the compensation committee to be present). Each of our executive chairman and chief executive officer may provide recommendations with respect to compensation for the executive officers. The compensation committee considers these recommendations, but may approve, reject or adjust them as it deems appropriate. Regulated Cannabis Industry Considerations The experience and commitment of our named executive officers (three out of the four named executive officers had been with the Company since our first year of operations; Mr. Smith joined the Company in 2023, and brings decades of experience with public and private REITs, including companies focused on real estate for the regulated cannabis industry) provide the Company with unique skillsets in the business of acquiring, owning, leasing and managing highly specialized, mission-critical real estate for regulated cannabis operations. This team combines decades of proven institutional REIT management with an in depth understanding of the regulatory and operational nuances of the regulated cannabis industry, which we believe have been critical to our past achievements and remain critical to the continued execution on our Company’s long-term strategy. The regulated cannabis industry is subject to risks and uncertainties that are highly unique in comparison to traditional industries, which also impact our Company and our management team. In particular, notwithstanding the proliferation of state-level medical-use and adult-use cannabis programs across the United States, cannabis remains a Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, meaning that the manufacture, distribution and dispensing of cannabis remains illegal under U.S. federal law. This regulatory uncertainty at the federal level has represented and continues to represent a significant risk to the Company and each member of the management team individually, which are generally not risks faced by management teams at other publicly-traded REITs. These risks include, but are not limited to, the potential for strict enforcement of existing federal law (which could encompass actions including, without limitation, asset forfeitures and criminal prosecution), onerous federal taxation on cannabis-related operations, very limited access to federal courts generally and for bankruptcy situations specifically,