From tribal gaming and state lotteries to the rapidly evolving world of sports betting, Steve Ungar brings unmatched regulatory depth to clients in one of the most dynamic and tightly governed industries in the U.S. and abroad. His experience as Oregon Lottery Chairman from 2005 to 2012 has proved to be invaluable.
In most industries, a legal problem costs you money. In gaming, it can cost you your license. And without the license, there is no business. Every operator, vendor, and investor in this industry lives under a level of regulatory scrutiny most businesses never experience: state commissions, tribal compacts, federal oversight, background investigations, and compliance obligations that touch every corner of the operation.
Ungar Law Office has been guiding clients through this landscape for decades.
We’ve Sat on the Regulator’s Side of the Table
Steve Ungar chaired the Oregon Lottery Commission from 2005 to 2012, appointed by two governors. He has also served as general counsel to a public company in the software, gaming, and lottery industry. He has run the meetings, shaped the policies, and overseen the compliance reviews that gaming businesses answer to. When your counsel has been the regulator, you don’t have to guess how the regulator thinks.
An Industry That Never Stops Changing
Sports betting is expanding state by state. Tribal gaming continues to grow in scale and sophistication. Technology outpaces the rules written for it. Opportunity in this industry arrives tangled in regulatory questions no one has answered yet. The businesses that thrive are the ones whose counsel can navigate ambiguity without betting the license on it.
What We Do
- Licensing applications and regulatory approvals at state and tribal levels
- Representation before state gaming commissions and lottery boards
- Compliance program design and internal audits
- Response to regulatory investigations and enforcement actions
- Tribal-state compact negotiations and gaming ordinance work
- Sports betting regulatory matters as the industry expands
- Counsel to operators, vendors, and management companies
Who We Help
Gaming operators and their management companies. Lottery retailers and contractors. Sports betting platforms and their partners. Inventors, investors, marketing advisors, and financial and technical consultants across the gaming, lottery, and sports betting industries. Tribal gaming enterprises, a practice deep enough that it has its own page.
Protect the License First
Whether you’re entering the market, responding to a commission inquiry, or facing an enforcement action, every decision should be made with one question in view: what does this mean for the license? That’s how we practice. If your business lives in this industry, let’s talk before the next regulatory question arrives.