Two years after being named chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, Kirk Hendrick is stepping down from his post after the 2025 session of the Nevada Legislature.
The exact date for Hendrick’s final day with the Board is to be determined, but in a statement released Wednesday, he said it would be at the end of the session that starts in early February and goes through early June.
Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo appointed him to the post in January 2023 following his election as governor. Hendrick gave no indication in discussions with CDC Gaming in December or at the January Board meeting of his plan to step down.
“I recently had a great conversation with Governor Lombardo and we discussed how much the Board has accomplished since he appointed me as chairman two years ago,” Hendrick said. “We also discussed more to still be accomplished, including the Board’s priorities for the legislative session starting next month. Our conversation concluded with me informing the governor of my intention to resign as Board chair following the legislative session.”
Hendrick, 60, said his announcement allows Gov. Lombardo time to find the next Board chair and provide for a smooth transition of leadership.
“It also allows me to tell all the amazing Board agents and employees, as well as Nevada’s gaming industry, citizens and visitors, that I am dedicated to accomplishing much more over the next several months,” Hendrick said.
His departure follows that of fellow Board member Brittnie Watkins, whose term expired at the end of this month and will be replaced by Lombardo.
The three-member Board makes recommendations on licensing and other gaming policy matters to the Nevada Gaming Commission. The chair oversees the agency that regulates and enforces regulations of the gaming industry.
Hendrick has carried out Lombardo’s call for state agencies to eliminate outdated regulations and streamline efforts within the gaming industry.
Hendrick has been a licensed attorney in Nevada for over 30 years. He began his legal career in 1991 as a litigator with a Nevada law firm. In 1993, the Office of the Attorney General recruited Hendrick as a criminal prosecutor of a new Worker’s Compensation Fraud Unit.
Hendrick transferred to the OAG’s Gaming Division in 1996 where he was promoted to senior deputy and then chief deputy of the Division that provides legal representation to the NGCB and the Nevada Gaming Commission. He was also chief legal counsel to the Nevada Athletic Commission for several years.
Hendrick returned to private practice in 2001, focusing on gaming and sports law matters. He then went on to join the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as a key member of the company’s executive team from 2002 to 2017. After leaving the UFC, he founded Hendrick Sports & Entertainment, a consulting company in 2019.
Hendrick grew up in Las Vegas and graduated from Chaparral High School. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Nevada Las Vegas and his Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law in San Diego, California.
