Letter to the Editor

IMGL, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Creates 50-State Gaming Law Databank

Since its inception, the International Masters of Gaming Law (IMGL) has been committed to the creation of a comprehensive body of substantive gaming law resource materials addressing myriad legal issues facing gaming law practitioners throughout the world.

To that end, the IMGL has teamed with law schools located in commercial gaming states to produce gaming law education conferences in Nevada (William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV), Mississippi (University of Mississippi Law School), Michigan (Thomas M. Cooley Law School), and Louisiana (Tulane University Law School), followed by the publication of scholarly gaming law articles in a dedicated issue of the school’s law review journal.

The next educational conference site is Chicago in spring 2007, where the IMGL will team up with the John Marshal Law School.

The IMGL is now taking its next major step forward in advancing its educational goals. Thanks to the strong support of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School—the nation’s largest law school—a first-of-its-kind Gaming Law Directed Study Program has been established.

In the 2006 fall term, seven bright, highly motivated Thomas M. Cooley Law School students commenced a comprehensive directed study program that has provided a 50-state compendium of gaming statutes, regulations, and case law. The directed study project has been supervised by Professor Martha Denning Moore, a frequent lecturer and author on legal ethics. Professor Moore was assisted by IMGL members Tony Cabot (Lewis & Roca, Las Vegas, Nev.) and Bob Stocker (Dickinson Wright PLLC, Lansing, Mich.).

The results of this joint project between the Thomas M. Cooley Law School and the IMGL will be available on the IMGL website to all gaming lawyers, gaming professionals, and other interested persons. The expected launch date is February 2007.

Access to this wealth of gaming information will be categorized by state, as well as by gaming topic. Each state gaming law summary is broken into specific gaming topics. Each topic has support materials (statutes, rules, and case law) that will be accessible on the IMGL website (www.gaminglawmasters.com). In addition, relevant state regulatory agencies will be accessible from the IMGL website.

This is the first educational tool of its kind. It is a dramatic, groundbreaking leap forward in gaming education.

The Thomas M. Cooley Law School students who toiled tirelessly to draft the materials that form the substance of this educational tool deserve the accolades of the gaming industry. The IMGL introduces them to you (in alphabetical order):

Jeremiah Barlow. Associate Editor, Thomas M. Cooley Journal of Practical and Clinical Law; Dean’s List and Honor Roll; Honors scholarship recipient; graduating September 2007. Under-graduate degree: University of Nevada, Reno, B.A., political science. Email: barlowj@cooley.edu.

Jason Bitzer. Assistant Articles Editor, Thomas M. Cooley Law Review; Vice President, Grand Rapids Sports and Entertainment Law Society; Dean’s List and Honor Roll; Certificates of Merit in Research and Writing, Taxation, and Business Organizations; graduating September 2007. Undergraduate degree: Eastern Michigan University, B.S., communications. Email: bitzerj@cooley.edu.

Amy R. McManus. Interim Comments Editor, Thomas M. Cooley Law Review; Dean’s List and Honor Roll; Honors scholarship recipient; graduating September 2007.  Undergraduate degree: University of Notre Dame, B.A. Magna Cum Laude, Spanish language and literatures. Email: mcmanusa@cooley.edu.

Ecleynne Mercy. Editor-in-Chief, The Docket; President, Caribbean Law Students Association; National Team, Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition; top ten oral advocate, first-year moot court competition; semi-finalist, intra moot court competition; graduating May 2007. Undergraduate degree: Howard University, B.S., political science. Email: mercye@cooley.edu.

Clifton Schneider. Screening and Preemption Editor, Thomas M. Cooley Law Review; full Honors scholarship recipient; Certificates of Merit in Contracts II, Torts II, Civil Procedure II, Criminal Procedure, Negotiable Instruments, and Alternative Dispute Resolution; graduating January 2007. Undergraduate degree: University of Michigan; B.S., computer science. Email: schneidc@cooley.edu.

Craig Stanger. Associate Editor, Thomas M. Cooley Journal of Practical and Clinical Law; Academic Scholarship recipient; Law Clerk in Utah United States Attorney’s office; graduating May 2007. Undergraduate degree: University of Utah, B.S., political science. Email: stangerc@cooley.edu.

Katherine Tirone. Senior Associate Editor ‘06, Managing Associate Editor ‘07, Thomas M. Cooley Law Review; Associate Editor Thomas M. Cooley Journal of Practical and Clinical Law; John D. Voelker Award recipient; Dean’s List and Honor Roll; Honors scholarship recipient; graduating September 2007. Undergraduate degree:  Northeastern University, B.A., communication studies. Email: ktirone@hotmail.com.

The Thomas M. Cooley Law School Gaming Law Directed Study Program is a continuing program. The IMGL 50-state gaming law database will be updated through the directed study program and IMGL member updates on an ongoing basis. In making it available on an open, widespread basis, the IMGL emphasizes that its database is the starting point for addressing gaming law issues. The IMGL website will remind users that in all events, knowledgeable gaming counsel should be consulted before any gaming activity decisions are made and implemented. IMGL members are, of course, an excellent available professional resource.

The IMGL is currently working on the next phase of its gaming law website data bank: Canadian gaming law. In the pipeline thereafter is gaming law in Europe, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central and South America, the South Pacific, and the Far East. This is a multi-year project which, when completed, will constitute the single largest comprehensive resource of readily accessible gaming law materials in the world.