Gaming Law Pioneer Joel Sterns Dies at Age 76

A man who did the hard labor and bucked the odds in a way that greatly affected all of our lives, either directly or indirectly, has passed. Joel Sterns, senior director of Sterns & Weinroth in New Jersey and named a \”Super Lawyer\” by his peers in 2005 and \’06 … died Monday from medical complications related to heart disease. He was 76 years old.

Though Sterns\’ accomplishments were vast, and included many positions in state and federal governments, he was best known for helping give birth to Atlantic City as we know it (or at least knew it until very recently) by setting the regulatory path in the \’70s that allowed for the first licensed American casino outside of Nevada.

According to Roger Gros, publisher of Global Gaming Business and owner of
Casino Connection International:

Joel was a gentleman, but fought hard for his clients, which was very difficult to do in those formative days. Remember, only Nevada had any sort of gaming law, and NJ didn\’t want to simply copy that state, so it was like writing an entire book of laws. But Joel was up to the task.