Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak has appointed a Las Vegas attorney to the state Gaming Commission, bringing the regulatory agency to its full complement of five members for the first time this year.
Steve Cohen, a founding partner of the firm of Cohen Johnson, is replacing former U.S. District Judge Philip Pro, who did not seek another term.
Cohen will serve on the part-time commission, which exercises final judgment on licensing and other recommendations from the state Gaming Control Board, until April 2023.
The commission had fallen a member short after Sisolak appointed Commissioner Sandra Douglass Morgan, also a Las Vegas attorney, to chair the Gaming Control Board shortly after taking office in January. He appointed Las Vegas attorney Rosa Solis-Rainey to fill Morgan’s seat on the commission.
In March, he filled the third of the Control Board’s three seats with the appointment of Phil Katsaros, CEO of Reno, Nev.-based Certus Gaming USA, and a former agent of the board for taxation, licensing and corporate security. Katsaros replaced attorney Shawn Reid, who served eight years and did not seek reappointment.
“Steve brings a wealth of experience in gaming law, and I know he’ll make an excellent addition to the commission,” Sisolak said.
Cohen is a member of the National Association of Trial Lawyers and has served with a number of political, humanitarian and charity organizations. He earned a bachelor of science from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and his law degree from the University of Arizona.
