Column: Lobbyists win big in race for Massachusetts casino

In the war over gambling in Massachusetts, there’s one thing the pro- and anticasino factions can agree on: the lobbyists and lawyers already have hit the jackpot.

Not a single gambling hall has been built, but the law allowing casinos and slots might as well have been a job creation act for the tasseled-loafer and pin-stripe suit set, with tens of millions of dollars flowing their way to grease the wheels of government and navigate the new rules.

Since 2007, when a newly elected Governor Deval Patrick declared he would welcome slots and blackjack to the Commonwealth, the gambling industry has spent about $16 million in lobbying and related legal work, according to records filed with the secretary of state’s office. The figure balloons when you add in general legal work, not captured in the filings, and just about every law firm in town seems to be billing hours related to casinos.

Much of the heavy spending was to get the bill passed in 2011, but casino interests have shifted their focus from Beacon Hill to town officials and regulators charged with the nitty-gritty of opening gambling palaces.