May 2018 President’s Message

I am writing to you as IMGL is preparing for a very active 18 months ahead.

Our 2018 Autumn conference in Prague, which is taking place from 5-7 September 2018, is in the final stage of planning with Stephen Ketteley of Wiggin and the Prague conference committee putting the final touches to the programme. Please feel free to contact Stephen directly if you are interested in participating or assisting in organising a conference panel. stephen.ketteley@wiggin.co.uk

We are pleased to be having our conference in a city like Prague which is full of attractions like the Lobkowicz Palace, where we are having our Gala Dinner.  Please click here to register now – accommodation bookings can also be made at the historic Carlo IV Hotel (formerly know as Boscolo)  at a preferred rate from our website.

The Prague conference follows a very successful spring 2018 conference in Las Vegas which was held in March.  Co-chaired by Bob Stocker and John Maloney and co-hosted with the American Bar Association, the UNLV Boyd School of Law, the UNLV International Institute of Gambling Research and the National Indian Gaming Association, the conference included a number of panel discussions concerning issues of relevance to industry participants.  Among the topics covered were the possible legalisation of sports betting in the United States in anticipation of the decision of the Supreme Court in Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association (now handed down), which included a panel involving three leading US State regulators, compulsive gambling (and the greater controls that can be exercised through the removal of cash in connection with the conduct of gambling) and Nelson Rose’s vision for the gaming sector in 2023.  There was also a very popular separate track dealing with tribal gambling issues, in which many of the leading lawyers and other industry participants in tribal gambling were involved.  Thanks to all of those who participated.  Indeed, a standard was set that we would be looking to follow at future IMGL Spring conferences in the United States.

Other features of the Las Vegas conference included an opening presentation by the Honourable Brian Sandoval, the Governor of Nevada and a lunch address by Jan Jones Blackhurst, the Executive Vice-President of Public Policy and Corporate Responsibility at Caesars Entertainment Corporation. Governor Sandoval presented on the recent developments in respect of gambling in Las Vegas, while Jan Jones Blackhurst commented on the necessity for diversity in the gambling sector. Also, we had a memorable gala dinner at the Mob Museum which highlighted for attendees some of the more memorable events from the history of Las Vegas – special thanks to Gordon Dickie and Stephen Rybar for their recollections.

Since the Las Vegas conference, the Executive Committee, comprising Mike McBride, Marie Jones, Marc Ellinger, Marc Dunbar, Justin Franssen, Quirino Mancini and Mike Zatezalo, have been busy making plans for future conferences.  We are pleased to announce that the 2019 IMGL Spring conference will take place in New Orleans from 27-29 March 2019, while plans are well advanced for the 2019 Autumn conference to take place in Munich, Germany.

We appreciate the efforts of the organising committees of both those conferences.

Also, Morten Ronde has been busy developing an IMGL Masterclass programme in Europe, with IMGL Masterclasses being planned to be held in Riga, Amsterdam, and Copenhagen in the next few months.  Of specific note are the IMGL Masterclasses to be held at IGB Live Amsterdam from 17-20 July and at the IAGR conference in Copenhagen from 17-20 September.  These are likely to be of global interest.  Any IMGL member interested in participating should contact Morten Ronde at morten@imgl.org.

Plans are also underway for IMGL Masterclasses to be held in the US, with the next IMGL Masterclass to be held at GIGSE at the Biltmore Hotel, Miami, on May 30 – May 31, 2018.  For further information, please contact Marc Dunbar at MDunbar@joneswalker.com or visit our website.

We trust that you are able to join us at one or more of the events referred to above.  Also, I trust that you continue to enjoy our publications (American Gaming Lawyer, Indian Gaming Lawyer, Canadian Gaming Lawyer, Asian Gaming Lawyer, and The European Gaming Lawyer) which are being co-ordinated by our Executive Director Sue McNabb.  We will be circulating soon a mailing list to confirm that you would like to receive these publications.

Finally, I would like to welcome Brien van Dyke as IMGL’s Assistant Executive Director.  She will be assisting Sue McNabb in co-ordinating our conferences and enhancing our social media presence.  Brien will be contactable at brien@imgl.org.