Clicky

US Department of Justice Files Notice of Appeal for Wire Act - PennsylvaniaCasinos.com News : PennsylvaniaCasinos.com News
wire-act
Published on
Update on

On Friday, August 16, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) officially filed a Notice of Appeal in the civil case that it recently lost to the New Hampshire Lottery Commission (NHLC) over the reinterpretation of the 1961 Wire act opinion. The Notice of Appeal was filed by the DOJ, led by Attorney General William Barr to Judge Paul J. Barbadoro who issued the previous ruling on the issue.

Judge Barbadoro said that he expected the case to eventually get to the US Supreme court and, true to that statement, the Department of Justice has intentions of filing the appeal with the US First Circuit Court of Appeals. However, nothing will happen for the next couple of months since the First Circuit Court of Appeals will not be in session until October.

Clearly, the Department of Justice is not willing to reverse its belief that the 1961 Wire Act still applied to all forms of interstate online gambling including those that involve temporary rerouting of data across state borders. The filing of the Notice of Appeal was not totally unexpected especially considering the fact that the government will not have to incur any costs – the taxpayers are the ones who will ultimately foot the bill.

Expected but Certainly Unwarranted

To begin with, the chances of the department’s appeal succeeding on its merits seem to be quite slim and this alone makes the motivations behind the move very questionable. In fact, it further reaffirms speculations that the appeal is a politically-motivated move that is being pushed by anti-online gambling casino mogul Sheldon Adelson.

According to iDEA Growth, a trade group representing all sectors of the mobile gaming industry, the Department of Justice should withdraw the appeal since it is a political move and it is totally unwarranted.

“The Department’s action, while hardly unexpected, is certainly unwarranted. DOJ generally files appeals of adverse district court decisions as a matter of course. We hope that, rather than engaging in a protracted, expensive and ultimately unsuccessful legal fight, the Department will take this opportunity to negotiate a settlement which will focus the Wire Act and DOJ’s enforcement resources on the right targets – the unlicensed illegal offshore Internet gambling operators who do not create jobs or tax revenue in the U.S. and do not appropriately protect consumers,” said Jeff Ifrah, the founder of iDEA Growth.

While there is a lot of optimism that the appeal won’t make any reasonable strides even at the First Circuit Court of Appeals. However, it goes without saying that the move has cast a shadow over the growth of online gambling in the country.

Latest Headlines

New State Legislation Targets Smoking in Pennsylvania Casinos

For the second year in a row, Pennsylvania State Representative Dan Frankel (D-Allegheny) has spoken out against allowing smoking exemptions at some companies, such as casinos. He has submitted a bill in Harrisburg, the state capital, that would make it illegal to smoke inside casinos and other businesses that are now excluded from the law. […]

Caesars Palace Online Casino Makes a Mark in Pennsylvania

Caesars has released a fresh initiative to strengthen its position in the expanding market of Pennsylvania online casinos. In its new guise as Caesars Palace Online Casino, the company hopes to compete with other top providers in Pennsylvania. Not just in Pennsylvania, but throughout the country, industry behemoths like DraftKings, BetMGM, and FanDuel have a […]

Pennsylvania Gaming Industry Reaches New Revenue Milestone

During the fiscal year 2022-2023, the gaming sector in Pennsylvania was on a phenomenal growth trajectory, setting multiple new revenue records. These milestones are reflective of the growing gambling market in the state. The PGCB reported record-breaking gaming revenue of $5.51 billion for the fiscal year. This figure represents a considerable rise of 10.0% above […]

Pennsylvania’s Self-Exclusion Program Reaches the 20,000 Mark

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has achieved a significant milestone by processing its 20,000th voluntary request for self-exclusion from the state’s brick-and-mortar casinos. Pennsylvania’s Casino Self-Exclusion Program first launched in 2006 to provide gamblers with the option of excluding themselves from the state’s legal casinos and retail sportsbooks. The PGCB, under the leadership of […]

Pennsylvania’s iGaming Wake-Up Call

Through the first four months of 2018, the gambling business in Pennsylvania has continued its increasing trend. In April, gambling establishments in Pennsylvania raked in more than $476,7 million. As compared to April of 2022, that’s an improvement of 3.2%. In April of 2023, the state’s revenue hit $420 million for the ninth consecutive month. […]

Similar Stories in Gambling

Parx Casino Sues Pennsylvania Skill Gaming Company

Parx Casino, located in Philadelphia, is arguably the most prosperous gambling operator in the state of Pennsylvania but the company believes that its profits would increase even further if the Commonwealth did not have any unregulated skill gaming machines. In the latest development, Parx Casino has taken POM to court in Philadelphia’s Court of Common […]

Pennsylvania Lottery Wins Commercial Gambling Lawsuit

While Pennsylvania is certainly one of the most vibrant gambling markets in the United States, there has not been a shortage of issues plaguing various aspects of these operations. Most of them have been relatively easy to handle but some have dragged out for quite some time. One of the most notable ones is a […]

Pennsylvanian Court Ends Halt to Seizure of ‘Skill Games’ by State Police

Last Tuesday, Commonwealth Court Judge Ellen Ceisler delivered a ruling on a request that was filed by Pace-O-Matic. The company, which is known for designing and assembling gaming machines under the Pennsylvania Skill brand, sought to have an injunction against the seizure of their machines extended. There has been a tug of war between Pace-O-Matic […]

Pennsylvania ‘Skill Games’ Still on the Spotlight

Earlier this month, “game of skill machines” which are classified under the “Pennsylvania Skill” brand were subject to lots of drama. These gaming machines which are very similar to slot machines have been on the receiving end of a number of rather controversial decisions with a number of police raids being organized and court orders […]