Sibley, left, with Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the late D.C. Madam. Courtesy of CarolJoynt.com.

He may be best known for representing the D.C. Madam when she was put on trial in 2007 for running a local escort service for high-profile clients (including Republican Louisiana Senator David Vitter), but Montgomery Blair Sibley is now pursuing a new trade — marijuana cultivator.

Sibley, whose many antics landed him a three-year suspension from legal practice in Florida and D.C. in 2008, has slowly been laying the groundwork to open a cultivation center under the District’s new medical marijuana law.

In September, Sibley registered the Medicinal Marijuana Company of America, LLC in the District, found himself a cultivator and identified potential warehouse locations where he could grow the 95 plants permitted under the city’s restrictive regulations. He also launched the D.C. Marijuana Growers Association, turning himself not only into a grower, but also a regulatory expert willing to guide budding entrepreneurs looking to open one of the District’s 10 cultivation centers or five dispensaries.

“[The] medical marijuana issue percolated into my consciousness early last year when I saw the movement going forward,” said the kilt-wearing former lawyer over coffee late last week in Dupont Circle. (The kilt is a nod to his Scottish heritage and Sibley wears it everywhere — even in court.)

“I’ve always been a farmer, and that my father is a farmer and I’m the seventh generation of Blairs here in D.C. and we’ve all been farmers,” said Sibley. “So, in one sense I’m drawn to the actual farming part of it. But my particular skill set, being an attorney, is understanding regulatory compliance. And as I looked at the medical marijuana issue — not really from the patient’s point of view, but from the production and distribution point of view — I knew there would be, and in fact there have been, 100 pages of regulations. So that became a natural fit for me, and some of the other people I am involved with in terms of each bringing a set of skills.

“I think I can navigate the regulatory-compliance part,” he added.