2008 GREAT WOMEN OF GAMING
Rising Star
Jennifer Roberts
Associate Attorney
Lionel Sawyer & Collins
Jennifer Roberts, an associate attorney in the Gaming and Regulatory department at Lionel Sawyer & Collins, has enriched her career through the education of others. A winner of the Rising Star category, Roberts currently co-teaches a gaming law class at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), with her fellow attorney and mentor Bob Faiss, but her love of teaching reaches back to law school, when Roberts was a teaching assistant in the Academic Support Program. “I helped tutor students for property examinations and understand some of the more complicated areas of property law,” said Roberts. “It was very rewarding.”
Law students weren’t the only benefactors Roberts leant a helping hand to; she also had the privilege to make a difference in the lives of the less fortunate. “I worked in a youth prison,” said Roberts. “I’ve always enjoyed seeing people do something positive in their lives. For me, that is teaching.”
Roberts is also active in judging competitions at the local high school and college, as well as regional, levels. She recently judged an international competition that took place at UNLV. “I was on a panel of judges for the semi-final rounds of an international client counseling competition,” she said. “The three teams I saw were from Australia, Russia and Ireland. It was exciting to see law students from those countries competing and seeing how well they counsel clients.”
Roberts also helps out at area high schools by judging mock trials. She said she participates in those types of activities as much as possible.
Roberts counts teaching and mentoring among her greatest professional accomplishments, along with helping her clients accomplish their goals—in the current economic environment, that’s a challenge in itself. But there’s a spark of hope among the negativity: Roberts is currently working with Hard Rock Cafe in getting all the licenses necessary to open its new location on the Las Vegas Strip, set to debut later this year. “I enjoy working on this new location and seeing it grow, especially since the Strip is going through a downturn,” said Roberts. “I like to see that something I helped work with is coming to fruition.”
Roberts also spoke with great passion of the tight-knit community that encompasses those in gaming law, whether it be attorneys, regulators or clients. “To me, it’s about the relationships. Everyone has been such a joy to work with—it’s a wonderful group.”
But if it hadn’t been for the one gaming law class offered at the University of Utah (Utah is one of two states without legalized gaming), where Roberts was a William H. Leary scholar, she might not have ended up in gaming law. “I got lucky that I interviewed with my firm,” said Roberts. “I didn’t know Bob Faiss because I lived in Utah. But I was blessed to be able to join my firm and work with the best attorneys in the area.”
It’s no surprise that Roberts counts Faiss as one of those she most admires (the other is her mother). “I just hope to accomplish at least a fraction of what he has,” she said. “It’s amazing what he’s done for the gaming industry.”
Roberts credits Faiss and Ellen Whittemore, also part of her firm’s Gaming and Regulatory Law department, for guiding her in her career. “I owe so many of my accomplishments to them,” she said. “I couldn’t be where I’m at in my career without them.”
It is these accomplishments, as well as her work with the Hard Rock and mobile gaming operator Cantor Gaming, that Roberts believes led to her award as a Great Woman of Gaming. “I looked through the accomplishments of the other recipients and nominees, past and present, and feel truly honored to be in the same class as them,” she said.
So what does Roberts look forward to in the future? New advancements, such as mobile gaming, in her field, as well as maintaining and seeking out great relationships with her clients. She also hopes to augment her expertise in liquor laws, a topic she has lectured on at the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV.
She also hopes to continue a newly acquired personal passion—running. After taking up the sport to get into better shape, Roberts has competed in 21 half-marathons.
It’s all part of her can-do attitude, which sums up her thoughts on challenges that come her way or that come up for others. “Just work hard and be comfortable with the challenges you’ll face. Then, there’s nothing better than to overcome those challenges.”
Copyright 2010, Great Women of Gaming. All rights reserved.
