McDermott Will & Emery UK LLP stands out for its specialisation in the online gaming sector, with the team handling DPAs, regulatory investigations, and compliance reviews for leading names across the sector. Practice head and ‘superb tactician’ Simon Airey is a key contact for clients in the betting and gambling industries seeking advice on complex corporate crime and regulatory issues, while James Dobias has significant experience acting on DPAs. Airey and Dobias work alongside William Merry, who ably assists on SFO, HMRC, and FCA investigations.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘This is a brilliant, world-class team. They are imaginative and practical, with wonderful talent at all levels.’

  • ‘Simon Airey is a superb tactician and wonderful to work with. He achieves extraordinary results largely through his imaginative approach to the law. Immensely charismatic.'

  • 'James Dobias is outstandingly able.'
  • 'William Merry has superb judgment and is a star of the future.’
  • ‘The team are highly astute and experienced in this practice area. They are always responsive and have an enormous work rate. They are also pragmatic and client solution orientated.’

  • ‘Simon Airey - immensely experienced in this practice area and attentive to the needs of the client. A pleasure to work with.’

  • ‘A widely respected team with particularly strong links to the gambling sector. Genuine expertise in representing corporates.’

  • ‘Simon Airey is charismatic and charming. Reassuring to corporates and a thoughtful strategist. Enormously experienced and quickly able to pinpoint the winning points.’

Key clients

  • Entain
  • Dentsu
  • TREO
  • Skywind
  • CDW Limited
  • Playtech
  • NTT Group

Work highlights

  • Advising Entain plc in relation to a cross-border investigation conducted by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) into potential corporate offending by the Entain plc group.
  • Advised CDW in relation to an alleged fraud committed against it by a former employee.

Lawyers

Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Simon Airey

Other key lawyers

James Dobias, William Merry