Jones Walker’s gaming practice, the largest in the southeastern United States, provides full-spectrum legal counsel to clients on gaming law. We represent all participants in the industry, including casinos, tribes, product manufacturers and suppliers, pari-mutuels, lottery vendors, sweepstakes and charities. We also represent other parties — such as investors, lenders and vendors — that have gaming-related interests.
The gaming team works with lawyers from throughout the firm’s many practice groups to deliver comprehensive legal advice. Our ability to provide coordinated counsel in corporate, finance, securities, tax, labor and employment, and other areas of law helps streamline our work and minimize the risks and steep learning curves that can arise when using multiple law firms for legal services.
We advise clients in key areas of service:
Licensing, Regulatory, Compliance and Enforcement
Jones Walker attorneys have extensive experience advising and assisting gaming clients in connection with licensing, permitting, compliance and enforcement issues, and the interpretation of gaming statutes and regulations in the Gulf states. We represent clients in suitability applications and proceedings before state gaming regulatory bodies such as the Louisiana State Police, the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, the Mississippi Gaming Commission, and local commissions and tribal authorities in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
Operations
Throughout our practice, we routinely advise clients on operational issues, including negotiating and documenting a wide variety of commercial contracts that are implicated by the gaming laws, such as employment contracts, consulting contracts, non-competition agreements, confidentiality agreements, leases and purchase agreements. We also represent clients in matters ranging from patron disputes to Jones Act, personal injury and workmen’s compensation claims arising out of gaming operations.
Lending and Finance
We handle equity investments, secured and unsecured loans, debt and bond offerings, and restructurings for both development and continuing operations of gaming projects. We regularly serve as lead, local or special lending counsel on these transactions on behalf of gaming companies, financial institutions, private equity groups and other investors. Our attorneys can easily partner with other lawyers and work skillfully and cooperatively with clients’ in-house and general counsel when it best serves the goal at hand.
Government Relations
The government relations team regularly appears before legislative committees on behalf of gaming clients. We work closely with the legislative and executive-branch staff on state and federal levels, and have cultivated professional relationships with legislators and regulatory officials, helping write many of the laws and regulations that govern the gaming industry.
We provide coordinated, multidisciplinary counsel for clients in conjunction with our real estate, construction, development, zoning and land use, corporate and securities, labor and employment, tax, environmental, litigation, white-collar criminal defense, and other firm practice groups.