Profile
David Whyte
020 3334 8225
Before joining Harris Hagan in September 2019, David worked in-house at a large land-based casino operator and as General Counsel for an online operator, gaining first-hand experience of both sectors and the commercial needs of operators. Prior to moving in-house, David trained and worked at the Gambling Commission for nine years in both the enforcement and legal departments. This provided him with a unique insight into the regulatory framework in Great Britain.
Specialising in all aspects of online and land-based gambling law, David advises land-based and online gambling businesses (B2C and B2B), as well as many start-ups. He advises on legal classification, non-remote and remote licence applications, personal applications, advertising requirements, terms and conditions, data protection, general compliance and reporting requirements, compliance assessments, regulatory investigations, corporate evaluations, operating and personal licence reviews, and developing associated remedial compliance programmes and action plans.
In his spare time, David enjoys rugby (RFU accredited coach), cycling, most other sports, theatre and the occasional casino visit.
University of Warwick, 2014
Law Society of England & Wales, 2016
Band 2, Chambers UK 2026
Next Generation Partner, The Legal 500 2026
Band 3, Chambers UK 2025
Next Generation Partners, The Legal 500 2025
Band 3, Chambers UK 2024
Associate to watch, Chambers UK 2024
Rising Star, The Legal 500 2024
Associate to watch, Chambers UK 2023
Key Lawyer, The Legal 500 2023
Key Lawyer, The Legal 500 2022
Key Lawyer, The Legal 500 2021
“David Whyte’s advice is very clear, completely practical and hugely commercial. He totally understands the competing demands within an operator.” Chambers UK 2026
“David is excellent and provides us with a pragmatic and supportive view in everything he does for us.” Chambers UK 2026
“David Whyte offers a high level of service, is calm under pressure and is both strategically able and brilliant on detail.” Chambers UK 2026
“David is proactive, understands the needs of what we were trying to achieve and delivers the training with professionalism and expertise.” Chambers UK 2026
“David works on a lot of material of a complex nature. He always delivers on time and takes into account the opinion of the client in the brief. He is a good communicator.” Chambers UK 2026
“Working closely with David Whyte and John Hagan, they have both proved very knowledgeable in their field and provided excellent training for our company, including for executive-level senior staff.” The Legal 500 2026
“David is extremely knowledgeable of the gambling industry. He is able to provide very thorough advice, whilst also being very direct, pragmatic and to the point.” Chambers UK 2025
“I was extremely impressed with David’s approach to complex issues, particularly in respect of his commercial awareness and vision.” Chambers UK 2025
“David Whyte is a brilliant advisor to us on all regulatory and, indeed, business issues. He is always available and gives cool, calm and clear advice during crises. He has worked in the regulator and has had significant experience outside of business.” The Legal 500 2025
“Friendly, approachable, advice and guidance is not always done in legal jargon, they have a great way of describing a situation in layman’s terms. David Whyte covers all these areas with excellence.” The Legal 500 2025
“Dave is very responsive and knows the industry, regulations and landscape very well.” Chambers UK 2024
“David Whyte brings not only technical excellence to the firm but, importantly, an excellent understanding of the regulatory environment. His wider experience provides an invaluable contribution to strategic discussions.” Chambers UK 2023
“He gives detailed and actionable advice, and makes it easy for us to understand complex regulations. He also has inside knowledge of how the UK Gambling Commission works.” Chambers UK 2023
“David Whyte is experienced from his background at the UK Gambling Commission and is also a pleasure to work with.” The Legal 500 2021
International Association of Gaming Advisors
Co-author, UK Law and Practice and UK Trends and Developments chapters, Chambers Global Practice Guide to Gambling and Chambers Overview
Co-author, UK chapter, Legal 500 Country Comparative Guide on Gambling Law
Co-author, Hot Topic, Legal 500 Country Comparative Guide on Gambling Law