Robert Ward on Helping iGaming Clients Outmaneuver Lawsuit-Obsessed Adversaries

By: Ifrah Law

Today’s iGaming companies face new litigation threats as expansive consumer protection statutes spark lawsuits with sky’s-the-limit aspirations, sometimes backed by private funders. Clients of Ifrah Law have a staunch defender in Robert Ward – an agile litigator and case tactician who responds to the changing state of play with creative legal defenses and efficient case-closing strategies. Robert draws on federal clerkship experience and appellate defense work to advise iGaming clients on litigation exposure, white-collar risk, and regulatory defense across multiple jurisdictions.

Creative Counterpoints: Defending iGaming Clients as Money-Seekers Multiply and Mutate

Robert’s main focus is defending iGaming clients targeted in consumer litigations and class actions. He also represents clients in suits brought by non-consumers seeking to profit from state-level loss-recovery laws. In some cases, claimants might also bring Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) allegations to amass defendants, claiming they are victims of a broad conspiracy.

Most often, Robert seeks to move these cases into arbitration, because iGaming platforms typically require players to accept arbitration provisions when they create accounts. However, as more recovery-seekers (non-customers and non-players alike) exploit gaps in state laws, Robert provides clients with prescient guidance, drawing on his litigation acumen and keen analysis of issues and case strategy.

“The legal issues in iGaming are fascinating. They encompass complex consumer protection and regulatory aspects, as well as nerdy legal issues such as centuries-old legal statutes being referenced in today’s lawsuits.”

Right-Sizing: Managing Client Litigation Costs with Pragmatic Solutions

Robert’s cases typically center on large-dollar lawsuits. However, he also works on smaller claims in which individual players are unhappy with a client’s service or with winning less money than they anticipated. These individuals often represent themselves rather than use a lawyer.

In such cases, Robert interacts directly with the individual to seek a reasonable resolution of the issue without entering litigation or arbitration, which even in small-dollar cases involve risk and uncertainty.

“I’ve worked on sweepstakes-related cases in which customers allege that our client has processed entries incorrectly, or somehow failed to uphold the terms of service. These negotiations skew more toward contract disputes than to consumer protection claims. I strive to resolve such claims fairly, without resorting to litigation.”

MVP HIGHLIGHT REEL

Won’t Back Down: Driving Past the Arbitration Option to Win Case Dismissal

A daily fantasy sports client was facing a perplexing lawsuit brought by an individual living in Massachusetts. The plaintiff was seeking recovery of unspecified past gambling losses even though he had never played a game on the client’s iGaming platform – or even created a customer account.

The person was taking advantage of a Massachusetts third-party loss-recovery statute which allowed such vague claims to be brought against iGaming operators. Ifrah’s client was among several iGaming companies named as defendants in the suit.

Robert assessed his client’s options, one of which was to compel arbitration. Massachusetts courts had granted arbitration in previous cases, even though the plaintiff had not signed an arbitration agreement. At first glance, arbitration seemed the easy option.

But, Robert saw potential in a second option: filing a motion to dismiss the case entirely. He calculated that the core premise of the lawsuit – that a non-customer could recover every dollar a Massachusetts resident ever lost on the client’s platform – made the lawsuit worth fighting.

Robert filed a carefully researched, comprehensive motion to dismiss the case, weighing this initial investment of time against the sums of money at stake and the risks inherent in a prolonged arbitration.

Robert’s strategy worked:  freeing him to negotiate an acceptable settlement, and the case was closed in six months. By contrast, other defendants named in the case – and a similar case filed by the same Plaintiff – were embroiled in it until late 2025 or remain in ongoing arbitration proceedings.

Changing the Game: Escaping State-Level Vortex by Taking the International Route

Thirty U.S. states now have gambling loss-recovery statutes on the books. Such statutes are typically used by individual claimants to demand money to recover purported gambling losses. However, one Ifrah iGaming client recently faced six similar loss-recovery lawsuits, all in different states but brought by six different limited liability companies. The companies shared an address, suggesting they were fronts for private parties with no connection to any of the six states and using a shotgun approach to bag big dollars.

Robert and the Ifrah team analyzed the six states’ loss-recovery statutes, and found many favorable court decisions where defendants’ lawyers pursued motions to compel arbitration, even where the plaintiff was not a signatory to the agreement. However, Illinois state courts were particularly resistant to such strategies.

Faced with this reality, the team tested a game-changing defense strategy in Illinois. Ifrah’s client is based outside of the U.S., with only some operations here. This suggested that Robert and team could leverage a treaty governing international arbitration agreements in the case: They argued to the Illinois court that rather than apply state law, it must apply federal law, which provided a more favorable standard for Ifrah’s client.

By pursuing this argument, Robert and team prevailed on a motion to compel arbitration in Illinois. This judgment is on appeal, with the appellate court’s ruling forthcoming. Still, by bolstering its briefing on the international treaty and related federal statutes, Ifrah was able to present different issues to both the trial court and the appellate court than other co-defendants who did not rely on this strategy.

Ifrah’s smart strategy is now being adopted by other law firms whose clients face similar challenges in Illinois and across the country.