International Gaming Summit Conference Program Committee
The Conference Program Committee plans and coordinates the IAGA International Gaming Conference program, recruits as speakers key gaming industry leaders and regulators from around the world, and ensures that each year's topics address cutting edge and current issues involving all facets of the gaming industry and the regulation of gaming.

             



          DR. WULF HAMBACH, Chair, is one of the founding partners of Hambach & Hambach. He regularly publishes articles in national and international legal media. Furthermore, he is a co-publisher and one of the authors of the legal commentary “Glücks- und Gewinnspielrecht in den Medien” (Gambling and Sweepstakes Law in the Media, C.H. Beck Verlag). Dr. Hambach is a sought-after lecturer at leading international conferences and board adviser of leading internet service companies.
          AMY ELDER, Co-Chair, has extensive experience in all aspects of gaming law. Ms. Elder represents and advises privately held and publicly-held casino operators, gaming-related manufacturers, casino management companies, investors, developers, commercial lenders and private equity firms in a wide range of gaming matters, including licensure, regulatory compliance, administrative hearings, financing and project development. Her clients include the largest gaming operators and gaming equipment manufacturers in the casino industry. 
          DR. BRETT ABARBANEL is Executive Director the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, International Gaming Institute, and Associate Professor in UNLV’s William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration. She has a research affiliate appointment at the University of Sydney School of Psychology’s Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic. Dr. Abarbanel's research explores the intersection of of gambling with esports, video games and traditional sports. She also has extensive experience in gaming operations and technology, responsible gambling and community relations, and gaming history.


          BAHAR ALAEDDINI is a Partner at Harris Hagan in the UK and specialises in all aspects of online and land-based gambling law. She advises many of the world’s largest land-based and online gambling businesses (B2C and B2B operators) as well as many start-ups, investors and leading international law firms. Bahar has extensive gambling legal, regulatory and licensing experience advising on legal classification, licence applications, investor due diligence, change of corporate control applications, complex group restructuring and specialist regulatory matters relating to mergers and acquisitions. She also advises on regulatory compliance assessments and investigations and licence reviews.



          VASILIOS CHRISOS, a Principal with PwC's Financial Crimes Unit, has 20+ years experience assisting companies on all aspects of financial crime compliance, AML and sanctions matters. He has assisted casino operators with implementing comprehensive, risk-based AML and sanctions compliance programs, including executing enhanced due diligence for higher-risk patrons and investigating suspicious levels of play. He serves on the Global Advisory Board of the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists.


         

SUE DAWSON is Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for Light & Wonder, a leading global provider of social, land and online casino games listed on both the NYSE and ASX. Before joining L&W, she was in-house counsel for both Inspired Entertainment and Gala Coral Group and spent 10 years in private practice advising clients in the betting and gaming sector. Working in gaming her entire 25-year career with both B2B and B2C operators has enabled Sue to gain a wealth of knowledge and expertise of gambling law across various verticals and jurisdictions.  
         

CHRIS ELLIOTT, a Partner with Wiggin, is a commercial and regulatory lawyer with a focus on UK regulatory and compliance advice for stakeholders in the online gambling and gaming industries. With deep expertise in all aspects of gambling law, Chris has extensive experience advising some of the world’s largest online and land-based B2C and B2B gambling businesses. He regularly engages with a diverse range of stakeholders, including operators, software suppliers, payment service providers, start-ups, investors, and financial institutions.


         

WES HIMES is Executive Director, Standards and Innovation for the UK Betting and Gaming Council. Wes was the CEO of the Remote Gambling Association (RGA). Prior to that he was a Managing Partner with Instinctif Partners and before that founder and CEO of the Policy Action. Wes started the interactive Gaming, Gambling and Betting Association (iGGBA) in 2000 which later became part of the Remote Gambling Association.

 



         

RYAN O'BEIRNE, a Partner with Butler Snow, Ryan focuses his practice on representing privately held business in sales and acquisitions, formation, and business planning and operations. Ryan also regularly represents gaming clients on regulatory matters before the Mississippi Gaming Commission.
         

ERICA OKERBERG, Vice Chair of Greenberg Traurig's Global Gaming Practice, focuses her practice on gaming law and promotional law. She has deep experience handling complex gaming licensing, operational, and regulatory matters for U.S. and International clients. She represents land-based and online casino companies, sports wagering operators, manufacturers and distributors, as well as other companies providing services to the gaming industry. Erica also has wide-ranging experience with analyzing and structuring social games, skill-based contests, and sweepstakes. 


         

HERMANN PAMMINGER serves as an Expert for Public and European Affairs at the Casino Austria Group's Head Office in Vienna. Beyond his roles within Casinos Austria, Hermann has been involved with the European Casino Association (ECA), serving first as ECA Press Coordinator (2006-2020) until taking the helm as Secretary General in 2020 amidst the challenging landscape of the pandemic.

 
         

ALON SEGEV is the managing partner of Segev LLP, a full-service business law firm with offices across Canada and the U.S. Alon has over two decades of experience in gaming and betting, M&A and commercial transactions, corporate transactions, real estate, secured lending, technology, and dispute resolution. His focus on risk analysis, decision-making, and process implementation leads to successful negotiations and risk mitigation for his clients.

 

 

Summit Sportsbetting Sub-committee
         

BILL GANTZ, a Partner with Duane Morris, is a versatile lead trial lawyer with nationwide experience representing gaming, technology, and manufacturing in intellectual property and commercial litigation, including patent infringement, trade secret, consumer class action and appeals. Bill has been advising the igaming industry since 2002 on regulatory, licensing and commercial matters in the United States. He regularly provides counsel on intellectual property and regulatory compliance matters to start-ups and digital entertainment businesses offering igaming, social gaming, pay-to-play or "freemium" games, fantasy sports, esports, sports betting, skill games, sweepstakes, retail product promotions and lottery tickets. 
         

GABRIELLE ANGLE is the Business Development Director - North America Gaming & Licensing for GeoComply. She joined GeoComply in late 2019, overseeing Licensing & Due Diligence for the company prior to expanding her role into Government Relations, and recently joining the Business Development Team. She previously worked in Regulatory Compliance for Scientific Games (now Light & Wonder) and NYX Gaming Group, where she focused on licensing but also worked in due diligence and other areas of regulatory compliance. Prior to her return to gaming in 2017, she was a Global Compliance Manager for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. 


         

BARAK COHEN, a Partner with Perkins Coie, represents companies and individuals facing government enforcement actions and investigations in highly regulated industries, particularly the regulated gaming, healthcare, and government contracting industries. Barak is a partner in the White Collar & Investigations practice, and co-chair / founder of the firm’s Cannabis Law group. He also works with the firm's Digital Media & Entertainment, Gaming & Sports industry group as the co-lead of the Gaming vertical, representing clients in the regulated gaming industry in litigation and investigation matters.
         

JESS FEIL serves as Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Compliance at OpenBet where she oversees the business’s global compliance function. Before joining OpenBet, Jess held the position of Vice President, Government Relations & Gaming Policy Counsel at the American Gaming Association. She started her career at a boutique law firm in Washington DC, where she advised gaming clients from all over the world on a variety of areas including regulation, compliance, and licensing.

 
         

CORY FOX is the Vice President, Product and New Market Compliance at FanDuel Group. He began his legal career at Sony PlayStation, where he served as Legal Counsel advising on a wide range of legal and regulatory issues related to the video game industry. Following his time at Sony PlayStation and the Entertainment Software Association, Cory joined FanDuel in 2015 as Director of Government Affairs. In his current role, Cory oversees all licensing and product counseling, working closely with FanDuel's product development teams to ensure that all new offerings comply with relevant regulatory requirements. 


         

MARCUS D. FRUCHTER  was appointed Illinois Gaming Board Administrator in May 2019. He leads the regulatory and law enforcement agency that oversees Illinois’ 15 casinos, 14 sportsbooks, and more than 8,500 video gaming establishments. Administrator Fruchter has directed implementation of Illinois’ landmark gaming expansion law, including the launch of the state’s sports wagering market and exponential growth in casino and video gaming operations. He has also spearheaded critical agency modernization initiatives and rulemakings. Prior to the IGB, Administrator Fruchter was a senior enforcement counsel at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, serving on the Cyber and Market Abuse Units.

 
         

BRIAN KROLICKI joined the Nevada Gaming Commission in February 2023, appointed by Governor Joe Lombardo for a term ending in 2025. A veteran of the private banking industry and a master of municipal finance, Brian began his career on Wall Street, working with high-profile firms such as Smith Barney and Bankers Trust Company. A temporary foray into a state government role unexpectedly led to Brian’s 24-year career in public service, including four sweeping election victories to the Nevada Constitutional Offices of Lieutenant Governor and State Treasurer. Brian is the first person in Nevada history to be term-limited twice. Brian continues to perform public service, serving as a Member of the Nevada Gaming Commission. 
           

RHEA LONEY
         

JONATHAN NABAVI serves as Vice President of Public Policy and Government Affairs for the National Football League (NFL) and is responsible for advising on all aspects of its public policy and legislative agenda and represents the League on a wide range of issues before Congress, the Administration, and other federal and local government agencies. Prior to joining the NFL, he served in a variety of senior congressional staff and political roles, most recently as Majority Counsel for the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, providing strategic counsel to the Chairman. He previously served as Counsel for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and as a senior adviser for multiple Members of the House of Representatives. 
           

PEDRO TRENGROUSE