Jeff Ifrah

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Jeff Ifrah is a Buffalo native-attorney[1] specializing in online gaming and sports betting law. He is the founding partner of Ifrah Law. Ifrah and Ifrah Law are ranked in the top bands by Chambers USA in Gaming and Licensing attorneys[2] and litigators categories.[3] His clients have included Genius Sports, Kambi, Sport Radar, Gaming1, Boom Fantasy, White Hat Gaming, Barstool Sports, The Action Network, Unikrn, Bet365, Playtech, WorldPay, and the Stars Group.[4]

Ifrah is the founder of the iDevelopment and Economic Association (iDEA), a non-profit association that advocates for online interactive entertainment business in the U.S. Ifrah, alongside other attorneys from Ifrah Law, submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court of the United States in the sports betting case Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, which was decided in favor of iDEA’s argument urging the rights of states to direct their own economies.[5]

Ifrah served as an Adjunct Professor at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law on the topic of Advanced Regulation of Sports Betting, where he taught a certificate program dedicated to the regulatory and legal aspects of sports wagering law and integrity.[6] He is also a member of the UNLV Gaming Law Journal Advisory Board, a member of the Online Gaming Lawyer Editorial Board, a member of the American Bar Association's Criminal Justice Section, and a member of the International Masters of Gaming Law.[7]

Ifrah co-authored the book Federal Sentencing for Business Crimes, a comprehensive treatise on federal sentencing in the context of business and white-collar crimes.[8]

Ifrah is frequently cited by major news organizations on issues in the sports betting industry, white-collar crime, and the broader gaming industry, such as CNN,[9] The Washington Post,[10] Wall Street Journal,[11] The New York Times,[12] ESPN,[13] and more.

Early life[edit]

Ifrah was born to Moroccan immigrants who settled in Buffalo, New York, and is the only son out of six children.[14]

Education

His early education began in a day school in Buffalo before he later enrolled in a mesivta in Toronto during his adolescence. Before he could receive his high school diploma, Ifrah enrolled at Yeshiva University, having gained early admission. At Yeshiva University, Ifrah earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in medieval Jewish history, with a specialization in Spain. During the summer, Ifrah attended Yeshiva University’s Cardozo Law School, where he met his wife, Barbara.[14]

Military

After hearing a speech from the Jewish Welfare Board about the need for military chaplains, Ifrah decided to work for the military as a lawyer, during a period of heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iraq following the Gulf War. Ifrah was commissioned as a First Lieutenant and was stationed at Fort Monmouth.[14]

Ifrah completed basic training and enrolled in the military’s Judge Advocate General School at the University of Virginia.[14][15] After completing his training at the JAG School, Ifrah worked as Trial Counsel to the communications and electronics military intelligence unit based in Fort Monmouth, which allowed him the opportunity to gain trial experience in cases alleging fraud against the government.[14] After two years of work at Fort Monmouth, he was promoted to captain and made Chief of the Military Law Branch.[15]

Career[edit]

In 1997, Ifrah accepted a position with Paul Hastings, a national white-collar law group. In one such case with the firm in 1998, involving an Austrian mobile sports betting operator advertising in New Jersey, Ifrah was exposed to online sports betting. This case led to Ifrah’s representing payment processors in online gaming as well as other businesses in online sports betting and online poker.[16]

In 2006, Ifrah became a partner and shareholder in the litigation department of another global firm, Greenberg Traurig.[7]

In 2009, Ifrah launched his own firm, Ifrah Law, which focuses on matters of online gaming, sports betting, litigation, advertising and marketing, and data privacy and cybersecurity.[17] In so doing, Ifrah and the firm began to collaborate with businesses in online sports betting and online poker as the businesses lobbied for changes in regulations that would allow them to conduct business in particular states. [16]

Ifrah gained international notoriety in 2012 for his role in brokering a settlement between PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, and the United States Department of Justice, following the 2011 “Black Friday” Poker Scandal.[18]

Ifrah and his firm scored another notable legal victory, this time against the U.S. Department of Justice, in a case involving the search, seizure, and forensic imaging of a flyer’s laptop using specialized software at the Los Angeles International Airport by a Department of Security Agent with notable implications for citizens’ Fourth Amendment rights.[19] On the ruling, Ifrah stated that it essentially said “a laptop is not a purse. It is one thing to look through items somebody carries in a handbag, but modern electronic gadgets contain vast amounts of personal data, metadata, and even deleted data that clearly require a well founded reason and a warrant to be searched by government officers.” [20]

Efforts for Gaming Legalization

Ifrah founded the iDevelopment and Economic Association (iDEA), a non-profit association seeking to grow jobs and expand the online interactive entertainment business in the United States through advocacy and education.[21]

In March 2017, Ifrah hosted a mock sports-betting trial at iGaming North America at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, which was attended by two NBA attorneys at the direction of NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who is known for his “realist” stance toward sports betting.[22]

In 2019, alongside the NBA and other sports betting industry participants, Ifrah testified in a public hearing on legal sports betting at the New York State Capitol building in Albany, New York.[23]

Ifrah joined in New Hampshire Lottery et al. v. Rosen (2021) as an intervenor, in a case involving the DOJ’s reinterpretation of the Wire Act following the overturning of PASPA in Murphy v. NCAA.[24]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Connelly, Patrick (2020-07-14). "Meet lawyer Jeff Ifrah, the Buffalo native helping the gambling industry form its future" (PDF). ideagrowth.org. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  2. ^ "Chambers USA 2023 ranks Ifrah law and firm partners among the top bands for gaming & licensing and white-collar crime and government investigations". law.com. 2023-07-01. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  3. ^ "Jeff Ifrah Makes The Short List For eGaming Review Award North America". Chambers and Partners. 2015-04-03. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  4. ^ "Attorney Jeff Ifrah Bet Big on his Passion Around Online Gaming and Won — an Exclusive Interview | Sports Litigation Alert". Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  5. ^ "Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, BRIEF FOR EUROPEAN SPORTS SECURITY ASSOCIATION, THE IDEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC ASSOCIATION, AND THE REMOTE GAMBLING ASSOCIATION AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONERS" (PDF). SCOTUS Blog.
  6. ^ "Jeff Ifrah". University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law.
  7. ^ a b "A Jeff Ifrah". Chambers and Partners. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  8. ^ "Ifrah Law". natlawreview.com. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  9. ^ O'Toole, James. "Ex-Goldman director Rajat Gupta set for insider trading trial". CNNMoney. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  10. ^ "One byproduct of esports betting? A crackdown on cheating". Washington Post. 2020-06-10. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  11. ^ Berzon, Alexandra (2013-02-26). "Internet Gambling Scores Its Biggest Win". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  12. ^ "DraftKings and FanDuel Call Off Merger". The New York Times. The Associated Press.
  13. ^ "Inside the NFL's gambling policy, and why violations are increasing". ESPN.com. 2023-06-05. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
  14. ^ a b c d e Bensoussan, Barbara (April 14, 2015). "The Accidental Lawyer". Mishpacha.
  15. ^ a b "A. Jeff Ifrah | Founding Member | Ifrah Law PLLC". IFRAH Law. Retrieved 2023-10-17.
  16. ^ a b "Meet lawyer Jeff Irah, the Buffalo native helping the gaming industry for its future". Buffalo Business First. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  17. ^ "About Ifrah Law | Ifrah Law PLLC". IFRAH Law. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  18. ^ "PokerStars settles with feds, acquires FTP". ESPN.com. 2012-07-31. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  19. ^ "Jeff Ifrah – Ifrah Law Wins Case Against Department of Justice | Press Release | Chambers and Partners". chambers.com. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  20. ^ "Jeff Ifrah's Law Team Defends Fourth Amendment Rights of Plane Passenger". Yahoo Finance. 2015-07-15. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  21. ^ Zavian, Ellen M. (2020-04-10). "Attorney Jeff Ifrah Bet Big on his Passion Around Online Gaming and Won — an Exclusive Interview". Sports Litigation Alert. Retrieved 2023-08-24.
  22. ^ "Adam Silver's bold stance on gambling". ESPN.com. 2017-11-30. Retrieved 2023-10-26.
  23. ^ Ramsey, Eric. "Comprehensive Sports Betting Hearing Wraps Up In New York". Legal Sports Report.
  24. ^ Allen, Brad (2019-02-25). "iDEA files suit against DOJ". EGR North America. Retrieved 2023-10-26.
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