Transactional lawyers not representing the
gaming industry may be in for a surprise if they believe they need not bother
familiarizing themselves with the new Massachusetts gaming statute signed into
law last November. Such is the message conveyed by "
Massachusetts Gaming Law: Looking to the
Future ," published today in the Boston Bar
Journal, a peer reviewed publication of the Boston Bar Association, and authored
by Dimitri Racklin, a partner at
WilmerHale's
Boston office.
This article will prove valuable reading for
just about any lawyer with clients covering these and other categories: catering
companies, IT consultants, security businesses, and anybody else providing
services to casinos in the Bay State. Ditto for lawyers with venture capital
clients or others wanting to fund gaming operations or services, and of course
those hoping to sell land for casinos or construct gaming
facilities.
"On November 22, 2011, Governor Deval Patrick signed
into law "An Act Establishing Expanded Gaming in the Commonwealth" (the "Act"),
codified primarily at M.G.L. ch. 23K §§1 ff. (available
here). With the Act's authorization of commercial
casino gambling and creation of a regulatory framework for the casino industry
in the Commonwealth, Massachusetts has joined the growing list of states which
have legalized commercial (as contrasted with Indian tribal) casinos in recent
years.[1]
The Act reflects the legislature's decision to establish
a limited-franchise gaming industry, opting for a limited number of licensed
casinos guaranteed regional exclusivity rather than open-ended authorization of
unlimited participation – and competition – in the industry (subject only to
licensing requirements focused on ensuring probity, suitability and financial
stability). The choice likely means that the development of the
Massachusetts gaming industry will take place in two related but in some ways
distinct phases." Read the full article
here.