Casino Enterprise Management

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Message From the President
By Robert W. Stocker II

I’m writing this message just after returning from the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas. Let me tell you, rumors that the gaming industry is in the dumpster are grossly exaggerated. The planes from the Midwest were packed to the brim with passengers heading to the gambling capital of the world. The sidewalks of Las Vegas were crowded with the usual array of visitors and assorted characters, and the casinos I visited were busy. G2E continues to get bigger and better, and the crowds were strong. Perhaps most significant of all, the programs in the investors’ forum were extremely well attended.

Discussions that I had with gaming equipment manufacturers were upbeat and free of the doom and gloom that the media is projecting. But the press has gotten one thing right: Hotel room rates are down significantly. There are some great room package specials available—all the more reason to visit Vegas!

The IMGL hosted a reception at The Stirling Club on Tuesday night of the expo. This reception has become the “in” event to attend before heading off to the manufacturers’ entertainment events. More than 150 IMGL members and assorted international movers and shakers attended. The energy at the reception was evident throughout the room. This year we moved into the club’s largest room. Pretty soon we are going to find ourselves over flowing into more than one room.

The energy and enthusiasm that I saw in Las Vegas during G2E bodes well for 2009. Although there will be challenges ahead, the gaming industry is populated with some of the most creative and dynamic executives in corporate America. I fully expect that 2009 will be a year of exceptional opportunity.

Berlin Conference a Success
The IMGL Berlin conference, which was well attended in the face of challenging economic news, served as the backdrop for the presentation of the IMGL Regulator of the Year award to Francesco Rodana, chief of the director-general’s staff and head of remote gaming for the Amministrazione autonoma dei monopoli di Stato (AAMS), Italy’s gaming regulatory agency. In addition, IMGL Italian general member Quirino Mancini was the recipient of the President’s Cup in recognition of his many efforts in support of the growth of the IMGL in Europe.

IMGL Reception at the International Gaming Expo
The IMGL is holding a reception at the 2009 International Gaming Expo, formerly known as the ICE tradeshow, in London. The reception will be held from 6:00–8:00 p.m. on Jan. 27 at La Galleria Pall Mall, the same location as last year’s very successful reception. Pall Mall is located in downtown London and is convenient to many of London’s excellent restaurants, as well as the London subway system. Melissa Lurie has sent out RSVP invitations for the reception to all IMGL members. I encourage all who plan to attend the International Gaming Expo to join us at the reception, and consider bringing other gaming professionals with you in an effort to expose them to the great benefits of IMGL membership.

IMGL 2009 Spring Conference
The IMGL’s upcoming spring conference will be held April 28–30 at Caesars Windsor Casino in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, in conjunction with the Canadian Gaming Summit, Canada’s popular gaming expo. More than 1,200 gaming industry professionals attend the annual Canadian Gaming Summit, presenting an excellent networking opportunity for the IMGL and its members. Attendees will also be able to inspect the fabulous new hotel, restaurant and entertainment facilities across the border at Detroit’s three casinos: MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity Casino and Greektown Casino.

Gaming Executive of the Year Nominees
Nominations for the IMGL’s annual Gaming Executive of the Year Award will be solicited from IMGL members in time for presentation of the award at the IMGL spring conference. Nominations and supporting data should be forwarded to IMGL Executive Director Melissa Lurie at IMGLDirector@aol.com. After review of the nominees by the IMGL Nominations Committee, the finalists will be presented to the IMGL General Members, who by plurality vote select the Gaming Executive of the Year.

IMGL Member Conference Activity Expands Furthering their commitment to the IMGL’s focus on gaming education, numerous IMGL members voluntarily commit their time and effort to a wide variety of gaming conferences. The commitment of these superb gaming lawyers is expanding in 2009. During the first six months of the new year, the IMGL has made commitments to the Combating Cybercrime in Betting and Gaming conference (Jan. 27, London), the Canadian Institute's Gaming in Canada conference (Feb. 26-27, Toronto, Canada), the Canadian Gaming Summit (April 28-30, Windsor, Canada), Casino Enterprise Management magazine's CasinoFest conferences in Indian Country (June, Grand Casino, Minn., and September, Southwest Calif.), the Southern Gaming Summit (May 6-7, Biloxi, Miss.), and the North American Gaming Regulators Association annual conference (June 2-5, Washington, D.C.). The IMGL is also a sponsor of the 14th International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking (May 25-29, Lake Tahoe, Nev.) and several upcoming Clarion Gaming and Beacon Events conferences. IMGL members will also be speaking at a variety of other gaming law conferences that are promoted by the IMGL on its website, in its magazines and in the IMGL President's Letter, including the American Bar Association Gaming Law Minefield conference (Feb. 5-6, Las Vegas, Nev.) and the Global Gaming Expo Asia (June 2-4, Macau). Space limitations prohibit a truly complete list of the conferences IMGL members will be involved in during the first six months of 2009. In all events, clearly no other gaming law organization comes close to matching the commitment of the IMGL and its members to the advancement of gaming education throughout the world.

IMGL Publication Report
The IMGL’s commitment to publication of gaming law periodicals will continue unabated in 2009. In addition to Casino Lawyer, which will be published semi-annually starting in 2009; Canadian Gaming Lawyer, published semi-annually; International Casino Law & Regulation loose leaf service, published in three volumes; the sponsorship of Law Review and Economics as an official IMGL publication; and the upcoming Drake Law School Law Review publication featuring scholarly gaming articles arising out of the law symposium jointly sponsored by the IMGL and Drake University Law School, the IMGL is commencing publication of a new gaming centric law review journal on a semi-annual basis in partnership with the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV. Also, at least one additional IMGL geographic area specific magazine is in the works for 2009—details on this exciting endeavor will be forthcoming in the near future. This is in addition to the many trade journal gaming articles and scholarly writings that IMGL members produce and publish on an ongoing basis throughout the year in a wide variety of international gaming industry and scholarly publications.

Membership Services
The IMGL is not a once-a-year event organization. It is an every-month-of-the-year gaming lawyer association dedicated to member services, gaming education and the advancement of meaningful, substantive dialogue within the international gaming industry. It is a member-focused organization with great transparency. Every single member, regardless of membership category, is encouraged to maximize the IMGL membership experience by taking advantage of the myriad opportunities presented to all members by virtue of the IMGL’s connectivity to the gaming industry, gaming trade journals, conference organizers, law school law review publications, educators, and regulators. All IMGL members, regardless of membership category, have a strong voice in the operation of the IMGL.

IMGL Membership Expands
The ranks of IMGL members are expanding at a steady pace. In addition to expanded opportunities in the General Member classification (i.e., private practice attorneys), the IMGL has a variety of affiliate member categories, including Accountants, Consultants, Counsel (in-house counsel and private practice lawyers in firms that already have an IMGL General Member), Educators, Regulators and Young Gaming Attorneys. All candidates for membership are required to have an IMGL member as a sponsor. Membership applications are reviewed by the IMGL Membership Committee for consistency with membership requirements and, once approved at the committee level, are passed on to the General Members for final approval by majority vote. The goal of this vetting process is to maximize the strength and quality of IMGL membership. If you are interested in becoming a part of the IMGL, please contact Executive Director Melissa Lurie at IMGLDirector@aol.com or me at rstocker@dickinsonwright.com. We will be happy to discuss the membership process with you.

Robert W. Stocker II
Dickinson Wright PLLC
rstocker@dickinsonwright.com

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