Constance Ladell became a lawyer 12 years ago after leaving her previous role as a travel agency manager. Now, after 10 years working for the legal department for the British Columbia Lottery Corp., she is considered a legal expert on Internet gambling in Canada.
The BCLC was the first lottery corporation in the country to offer its lottery products and casino style games online. Playnow.com launched in 2004 and was relaunched with casino style games in 2010. In 2011 the website teamed up with Lotto Quebec to provide access to its poker services.
“This is something near and dear to my heart! Over the course of the last 10 years I have been the main lawyer responsible for our Internet operation,” said Ladell.
Recently Ladell provided the legal work in an arrangement that BCLC entered into with Manitoba Lottery Corp., where players in Manitoba were able to access Playnow.com. The website went live to those who reside in the province in January 2013. Now players in Manitoba, British Columbia and Quebec are able to play poker against each other online, legally.
When Ladell is not dealing with complex interprovincial gambling agreements, she manages a team of four lawyers, four policy analysts and a specialized legal assistant. Ladell is also responsible for managing the legal risks across the corporation’s three revenue streams – Lotto Max, casinos and eGaming. Collectively these revenue streams contribute approximately $1.2 billion annually to the province.
In 2012, Ladell, was elected to the chair of the Interprovincial Lottery Corporation (ILC) by the minister in B.C. responsible for gaming. During her time as chair she supervised the recruitment of a new executive director and led the ILC through a difficult organizational change.
Ladell enjoys imparting her knowledge and is always willing to speak on various panels and conferences and at continuing legal education seminars. She believes in mentoring her team and helping them achieve their aspirations, as she has achieved hers.
At the age of nine, Ladell wanted to be a lawyer, but life took her in a different direction for a while. Then in the early ’90s she went back to school to study law and graduated in 2000.
“I have to say I love my job,” said Ladell. “Even after 10 years, I wake up in the morning and look forward to going to work.”
Before Ladell joined BCLC in 2003, she clerked for the British Columbia Court of Appeal and worked as an assistant counsel for the chief provincial firearms officer.
When Ladell is not in the office, she spends her time volunteering. She is a member of the BCSPCA’s Kamloops branch and is on the board of the Kamloops Symphony Orchestra (KSO), as well as the governance committee for the KSO. Ladell is an accredited disaster response volunteer, trained specifically to rescue and shelter domestic animals and livestock in an event of a manmade or natural disaster.
Another area that is close to Ladell’s heart is volunteering with charities that help women. She has served on the board of Kamloops YM-YWCA and the Kamloops Sexual Assault Centre, and she is being trained as a special victims’ assistance volunteer.
