Mark Huddle is a Senior Counsel in the Municipal Finance Group at Ice Miller. He regularly acts as bond counsel, disclosure counsel, underwriter’s counsel, and issuer’s counsel in public finance transactions for public and private issuers in Illinois, including school districts, municipalities, airport authorities, solid waste and recycling facilities, and manufacturers.
In addition, he counsels both public and private entities (including public and private partnerships, or "P3") on municipal and state governmental matters. Matters include economic development and tax incentive programs, tax increment financing, MBE / WBE certifications, contract procurement, purchase of municipally owned property, real estate tax abatements, zoning and land use, liquor and medical marijuana licensing, regulatory matters, and litigation. He also counsels privately held businesses and not-for-profit organizations regarding corporate and real estate development matters.
Mark has counseled clients regarding cannabis licensing and operations since the beginning of legal cannabis in Illinois. He advised the only successful minority-owned cannabis applicant in the medical cannabis program, helping the client to win a dispensary license and a cultivation license. Recently, he guided two social equity recreational cannabis applicants in winning three dispensary licenses. Mark and the cannabis team at Ice Miller have also provided regulatory, corporate, real estate, intellectual property, and other counseling to cannabis companies, including regarding private equity and asset sales.
Previously, Mark was a staff assistant for environmental matters and for the “Build Illinois” public works program in the Office of Illinois Governor James R. Thompson. He graduated cum laude from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois in 1981, received his juris doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1992, and earned an M.F.A. in 1994 from the University of Chicago. In addition to maintaining an active painting studio and singing in the St. Paul’s UCC choir, Mark is a second-degree black belt in Shidokan Karate, and occasionally acts on stage and in movies.