About Sean McGuinness
Mr. McGuinness is a partner in the firm’s Gaming and Tribal Affairs and
Gaming practice groups. His practice focuses primarily in the areas of
gaming, administrative and corporate law.
Mr. McGuinness has represented clients with licensing and regulatory
matters before the Nevada State Gaming Control Board, the Nevada
Gaming Commission, the Mississippi Gaming Commission, the
Colorado Division of Gaming, the Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission
and the National Indian Gaming Commission. He has also participated in
gaming-related matters in other jurisdictions such as California,
Louisiana, Michigan, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Canada,
Switzerland and Hungary. Mr. McGuinness is also a frequent speaker on
gaming issues at the State Bar of Nevada and the American Bar
Association continuing legal education seminars. He has also assisted
Professor Keith Miller at Drake University Law School with his alma
mater’s gaming law course.
Mr. McGuinness was previously with Beckley Singleton, which partnered
with Lewis and Roca in 2007. Prior to joining the firm, he was Vice
President and General Counsel for The Resort at Summerlin Hotel &
Casino (1997-2001), had a private gaming law practice in Mississippi
(1994-1997) and served as Compliance Director for the Mississippi
Gaming Commission (1992-1993).
Representative Cases/Matters
- Royal Bank of Scotland, Credit Suisse and Deutsch Bank's
financing related to the governement of Dubai's purchase of an
interest in MGM-Mirage
- Wells Fargo Bank's transactions with the Apache Tribe of
Oklahoma
- Paltronics' Nevada Gaming Licensure
- Grand Sierra Resort’s purchase of the Reno Hilton
- Epic Gaming’s NIGC approval as a management contractor for the
Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma
- Ellis Gaming’s NIGC approval as a management contractor for theHopland Band of Pomo Indians
- Ellis Gaming’s NIGC approval as a management contractor for the
Elk Valley Rancheria
- Granite Gaming Group’s purchase of Mermaids and LaBayou
casinos in downtown Las Vegas
- W.R. Hambrecht, the underwriter of FortuNet’s initial public offering
- Ellis Gaming’s approval as part of the management contractor
group for the South Beach Casino near Winnipeg, Canada
- PDS Gaming’s “going-private” transaction
- The Jackie Gaughan entities in the sale of the Plaza, Las Vegas
Club, Western and Gold Spike casinos in downtown Las Vegas to
Barrick Gaming
- Siren Gaming’s NIGC approval as a management contractor for the
San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians
- Fitzgeralds Gaming Corporation in relation to the sale of their
casinos in Nevada, Colorado and Mississippi
- Hilton Hotels Corporation-Bally Entertainment Corporation merger
- Bishop Gorman Development Corporation, land purchase, zoning
and $15.3 million Clark County bond transaction for the new Bishop
Gorman High School campus
- Various gaming licensing and related work for Horseshoe Gaming,
Bally Entertainment Corporation, Hilton Hotel Corporation, ITT
Sheraton, Circus Circus Enterprises, International Game
Technology, Sigma Game, Fitzgeralds Gaming Corp., Aladdin
Hotel & Casino, Hard Rock, Resort of Summerlin, New York New
York Hotel & Casino, Flamingo Las Vegas, Trump Hotels & Casino
Resorts, Union Plaza Hotel & Casino, Exber, Inc. among others.
Education
- J.D., Drake University
Law School, 1989
- M.A., Journalism and
Mass
Communications,
Drake University, 1989
- B.A., Drake, 1986
Bar Admissions
- Nevada, 2001
- Colorado, 2000
- Iowa, 1990
- Mississippi, 1994
Memberships and Affiliations
- International Masters of Gaming Law, Member
- International Association of Gaming Advisors, Member
- TAGLAW, Member
- Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, Advisory Board Member
- Gaming Law Committee within the American Bar Association,
Business Law Section, Immediate Past Chair and current Co-Chair
of that committee’s Commercial Gaming Subcommittee
- Gaming Law Section of the State Bar of Nevada, Executive
Committee Member
- Gaming, Entertainment & Sports Section of the Colorado Bar
Association, Member
- Mississippi Bar Gaming Law Section, Member
- Clark County Bar Association, Member
- Washoe County Bar Association, Member
Publications
- Author, “They Call It Gaming,” Business Law Today, July/August
2006
- Author, “Indian Gaming: An Overview,” GLS Newsletter, April 2005
- Quote, “Gambling on Casino Cases,” ABA Journal, April 2004
- Author, “Iowa Jurisdictional Update,” Gaming Lawyer, 2001 and
2002
- Co-author, “The Implementation of Excurions Boat Gambling in
Iowa,” Gambling and Public Policy: International Perspectives,
1991
Speaking Engagements
- Speaker, "Gaming Law for the Non-Gaming Lawyer", State Bar of
Nevada, Annual Meeting, Santa Barbara, California, 2008
- Featured Guest, "Nevada Newsmaker" show hosted by Sam Shad,
which aired on July 25, 2007, to discuss the upcoming Lewis and
Roca / Beckley Singleton Partnership. In addition to being a guest,
he is also a recurrent pundit on the show
- Speaker, “Governance, Regulatory and Internal Control Issues
Related to Indian Gaming,” Western Intergovernmental Audit
Forum, Reno, Nevada, Oct 2006
- Speaker, American Bar Association Meetings, ABA Section of
Business Law, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007
- Speaker, ABA Gaming Law Minefield, 2006 and 2007
- Speaker, Seminars, State Bar of Nevada CLE, Las Vegas,
Nevada, 2004 - 2005
- Speaker, Northwest Gaming Law Summit, Seattle, Washington,
2005
- Speaker, Annual Meeting, State Bar of Nevada, Annual Meeting,
Coronado, California, 2004
- Speaker, Global Gaming Expo, Las Vegas, Nevada, 2003
- Speaker, Southern Gaming Summit, Biloxi, Mississippi, 1996
- Speaker, International Congress on Casino Regulation and Control,
Locarno, Switzerland, 1993
- Speaker, Eighth International Conference on Risk & Gaming,
London, England, 1990
Other Distinctions
Mr. McGuinness is an “AV” rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell. He was
recognized on the “Who’s Who List” by In Business Las Vegas in 2005
and 2006. Mr. McGuinness was also named a Nevada Super Lawyer for
Gaming Law in 2007 and 2008. In addition, he was listed in the
Chambers USA |
