Conference Program
(as of 3 November)

Autumn Conference Program

WEDNESDAY 5 NOVEMBER

8:30 – 10:00
Registration Open
Lobby, Westin Excelsior
Piazza Ognissanti, 3, 50123 Florence

City Walking Tours
(optional – additional supplement applies)

8:45
The Evolution of Florentine Architecture
Meet in the Hotel Lobby, Westin Excelsior

9:30
Highlights of Renaissance Florence
Uffizi Gallery
Meet in the Hotel Lobby, Westin Excelsior

1:00 – 2:00
Luncheon
Frescobaldi Wine Bar Restaurant
Via dei Magazzini, 2-4/R, 50122 Florence

4:00 – 5:00
IMGL Business Meeting
Dante Room, St. Regis
Piazza Ognissanti, 1, 50123 Firenze
all IMGL members are encouraged to attend

5:30 – 7:30 
Welcome Reception 
SE·STO on Arno Terrace, Westin Excelsior
Sponsored By Fox Rothschild
Piazza Ognissanti, 3, 50123 Florence

Dinner is on your own in an area restaurant.

THURSDAY 6 NOVEMBER

8:30 – 4:30
Conference Registration Open
Sala Feste Foyer, St. Regis 
Piazza Ognissanti, 1, 50123 Firenze

9:00 – 9:10 
Welcome
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
Joerg Hofmann, President, IMGL and Senior Partner, MELCHERS, Germany

9:10 – 9:30
Presentation & Demonstration of New IMGL Website
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
Marc Dunbar, Partner, Jones Walker, LLP, Florida
Marc Ellinger, Partner Blitz, Bardgett & Deutsch, L.C., Missouri

9:30 – 10:00
Keynote Address
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis

10:00 – 11:15 
The Controversial Image of Gaming in the Face of the Media and the Public Opinion: What, if Anything, is the Industry Doing to Redress It?
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
The controversial image of gaming in the face of the public opinion: a risky and addictive vice, a popular form of entertainment, a lucrative and unrenounceable source of tax revenue and jobs for the governments or a bit of everything?  What, if anything, is the gaming industry doing to effectively redress an often biased, misjudged and distorted view largely pushed and supported by the media across the world?
Moderator: Sue Schneider, Partner, iGaming North America and Malta iGaming Seminar, Missouri
Speakers: Andrew Gellatly, Head of Global Research Services, GamblingCompliance, United Kingdom
Peter Howitt, Solicitor, Ramparts and CEO, Gibraltar Betting & Gaming Association, Gibraltar
Quirino Mancini, Partner, SCM Lawyers, Italy
Franz Wohlfahrt, Attorney, Law Office of Dr. Franz Wohlfahrt and former CEO, Novomatic, Austria

11:15 – 11:45
Networking Break
Winter Garden Foyer, St. Regis
Sponsored By Kalff Katz Franssen 

11:45 – 12:30
Point of Consumption
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. RegisThe UK and Germany introduced new tax regimes which include a high impact for operators in Europe who offer services to customers in these countries. Experts from both jurisdictions present an overview on the current situation and discuss the ways the industry can deal with this.
Moderator: Joerg Hofmann, Partner, Melchers Law Firm, Germany
Speaker: Frieder Backu, Partner, SSW Schneider Schiffer Weihermüller, Germany
Charles Gerada, Director, Jeffrey Green Russell Limited, United Kingdom
Peter Howitt, Solicitor, Ramparts and CEO, Gibraltar Betting & Gaming Association, Gibraltar

12:30 – 1:45
Awards Luncheon 
Vespucci Room, Westin Excelsior
Piazza Ognissanti, 3, 50123 Florence
IMGL Gaming Regulator of the Year – Europe and the Presidents Award will be given
Speaker: Carlos Hernández Rivera, General Director of the DGOJ, Ministry of Finance and Public Administrations, Spain

2:00 – 3:15 
iGaming Development: Learning from Other Mistakes & Successes 
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
This panel will compare and contrast the United States new entry into iGaming with the more mature European market.  The panelists will explore how the European market developed, the mistakes it made and how it moves forward and will compare each of those steps with the nascent US market in igaming.  Issues with geo-location, payment processing and the regulatory environment will be featured in this analysis.
Moderator: Marc Ellinger, Partner Blitz, Bardgett & Deutsch, L.C., Missouri
Panelists: Thomas N. Auriemma, Member, Compliance Committee, Penn National Gaming, Pennsylvania
R. Paul Davis, General Counsel, Counting House (IOM) Ltd., Isle of Man
Diane Mullenex, Partner, Head of Gaming and Gambling Practices, Pinsent Masons, France
Birgitte Sand, Director, Danish Gambling Authority, Denmark

3:15 – 3:30 
Networking Break
Sponsored By GLI

3:30 – 5:00
Sports Betting and its “distant” cousin: Fantasy Sports Leagues
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
The gaming market is based on reliability. Sport betting is the history, the future, and the nucleus of the market. How much does sports integrity matter and what can operators and regulators do about it worldwide? What are the sport security and legal implications to the sports gambling industry arising from the growth of North American online fantasy sports leagues, particularly the so-called “daily” or “weekly” leagues.
Moderator:  Stefano Sbordoni, Partner, Studio Sbordoni, Italy
Speakers: Santiago Asensi, Partner, Asensi Abogados, Spain
Jorge Godinho, Associate Professor, University of Macau, S.A.R. China
Joe Kelly, Partner, A&L Goodbody, Ireland
Kevin C. Quigley, President and Managing Member, Hamilton Quigley & Twait PLC, Minnesota

6:30 
Walk to the Castle
Meet Guide in Hotel Lobby, Westin Excelsior & St. Regis 

7:00 – 10:00 
Gala Dinner 
Palazzo Borghese
Via Ghibellina, 110, 50122 Florence
Sponsored By Novomatic

FRIDAY 7 NOVEMBER

8:30 – 9:30
Continental Breakfast
Sponsored by Ungaretti & Harris

9:00 – 2:00
Registration Open
Sala Feste Foyer, St. Regis

9:00 – 10:00
How to Enhance Your Standing with a Regulator
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
This session will be a frank discussion of the some of the pitfalls & problems which registrants with a regulated jurisdiction encounter & the impact upon their registration. Regulators will canvass how the Regulated can avoid these issues & improve their standing in the regulated world.  Included within the scope of discussion will be whether registration is a right or privilege, the right to counsel during the investigation leading to registration or renewal or & whether an attorney/client privilege exists.
Moderator: Michael Lipton, Q.C., Senior Partner, Dickinson Wright, LLP, Canada
William Bogot, former Counsel, Illinois Gaming Board and Partner, Ungaretti & Harris, Illinois
Kevin P. Mullally, Vice President of Government Relations & General Counsel, Gaming Laboratories International, LLC  new
Birgitte Sand, Director, Danish Gambling Authority, Denmark
Andre Wilsenach, Executive Director, Alderney Gambling Control Commission, Alderney

10:00 – 11:00 
Social Gaming: The Future of the Industry and Regulatory Issues
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
Within few years only, the social gaming industry has rapidly grown, and there are no indications for an end of this success story. This panel will address the future of the industry as well as key regulatory issues. What were the key transactions that made it possible? Where is the industry going in the near future? What are the trends and challenges that we can observe? As per regulation: Are social games really an unregulated area? And what does the relevant legal framework consist of in Europe and the world?
Moderator: Tal Itzhak Ron, Chairman, Tal Ron, Drihem & Co., Israel 
Speakers: Tina Kilmer, Vice President, Product Compliance, Bally Technologies, Nevada
Dr. Simon Planzer, Partner, Planzer Law, Switzerland; Lecturer in Law, University of St. Gallen HSG
Prof. I. Nelson Rose, Professor of Law, Whittier Law School, California

11:00 – 11:15 
Refreshments

11:15 – 12:15 
Current Issues in Gaming Regulation
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
Gaming regulatory investigations are a necessary evil for initial licensure, license renewals, disciplinary actions and review and approval of Key Persons.  When your client gets questioned during any of these types of investigations does the client have a right to counsel?  Is this just an issue unique to the US?  What about “spousal” issues?  Does who you are married to affect one’s ability to get licensed?  Can you be “married to the mob” and still get licensed? If your spouse has a felony conviction should that be a bar to licensure?  What about parent/child or sibling relationships?  Are any of these relationships a valid basis to deny a license?  How can you ensure consistency in regulatory decisions within a jurisdiction?  Can an applicant or licensee review investigative reports for accuracy prior to a regulatory action?   Are these controversies a US problem only?   If so, how do other non US jurisdictions handle these various types of license investigations and decisions and why may they be more successful and cost effective?  Join us for this lively discussion!
Moderator: Donna More, Partner, Ungaretti & Harris, Illinois
Speakers: J. Kelly Duncan, Partner, Jones Walker LLP, Louisiana
John Maloney, Principal and General Counsel, Law Offices of John K. Maloney, California
Keith C. Miller, Ellis & Nelle Levitt Distinguished Professor of Law, Drake University Law School, Iowa
​Hilary Stewart-Jones, Partner, DLA Piper UK LLP, United Kingdom
Robert W. Stocker II, Member, Dickinson Wright PLLC, Michigan

12:30 – 1:30 
Networking Luncheon
Vespucci Room, Westin Excelsior

1:45 – 2:45 
Financial Blocking – an Enforcement tool with Future?
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
Following Norway now Germany and the Netherlands plan to use Financial Blocking as enforcement tool against unlicensed online gaming operators. The panelists discuss the technical background and legal as well as practical challenges of Financial Blocking in Europe.
Moderator: Wulf Hambach, Partner, Hambach and Hambach, Germany
Speakers: Christian Chmiel, CEO at Web Shield Ltd., Germany
Justin Franssen, Head of Gaming, Sports & Entertainment Practice Group, Kalff Katz & Franssen, The Netherlands
Joakim Marstrander, Partner, Deloitte Tax & Legal, Norway

2:45 – 3:45  
Latest Developments in the Gaming World
Sala Feste Ballroom, St. Regis
Moderator: Nick Nocton, Director, Jeffrey Green Russell Limited, United Kingdom
Speakers: Susan Breen, Partner, Mishcon de Reya,United Kingdom
Nick Casiello, Senior Partner, Fox Rothschild, New Jersey
Sean McGuinness, Partner, Lewis & Roca, Nevada
Jamie Nettleton, Partner, Addisons Lawyers, Australia
Jaka Repansek, Partner, RePublis d.o.o., Slovenia 

4:15
Meet in Hotel Lobby, Westin Excelsior for Winery Tour

4:00 – 8:30
Winery Tour in Tuscany, Tasting & Closing Reception
Villa Le Corti
​Via San Piero di Sotto, 1-5, 50026 San Casciano In Val di Pesa FI, Italy
Motor coach transportation provided

SATURDAY 8 NOVEMBER

9:00 – 3:30
Outlet Shopping Excursion
The Mall & Prada
(optional — supplement applies)