In California, tribal-operated casinos are disputing an initial ruling from Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Lauri Damrell, which dismissed their lawsuit against non-tribal cardrooms.
The ruling issued on August 8 centers around the offering of banked games such as blackjack and baccarat.
The tribes argue that these games infringe on their exclusive gaming rights under state law.
Judge Lauri Damrell’s ruling hinged on the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), which she found takes precedence over the tribes’ lawsuit.
IGRA governs gaming on tribal lands, as in the Cayuga Nation’s victory over New York State on lottery activity, but the tribes, represented by attorney Adam Lauridsen, argue it’s irrelevant here since their complaint targets non-tribal cardrooms operating off-reservation.
Lauridsen called the pre-emption of the IGRA an overreach of federal authority, outlining that Senate Bill 549 (Tribal Nations Access to Justice Act), gives tribes the right to sue cardrooms in state courts to enforce their gaming rights.
He further warned that dismissing the case under the IGRA leaves tribes without a legal avenue to protect their rights and exclusivity.
“[The act] has not stretched that far and should not stretch that far,” said Lauridsen.
Can’t have it both ways, says Cardrooms’ Attorney
Conversely, Attorney David Horwich argued on behalf of the cardrooms that the tribes are seeking to eliminate competition by leveraging both the IGRA and state court lawsuits.
He outlined this dual approach isn’t open to cardrooms to use against tribes due to tribal sovereignty.
“They can’t have it both ways,” stressed Horwich.
“That is why (the regulatory act) exists.”
According to Senate Bill 549, tribes have the right to challenge cardrooms in court over banked games, where a ‘house’ or third party acts as the bank.
The cardrooms oppose this as they maintain their use of third-party proposition players (TPPs) to bank games complies with state law, despite tribal claims that it’s an illegal workaround to offer house-banked games.
The tribes allegation is that cardrooms’ use of TPPs violates their exclusive rights, costing them significant revenue with further direct impacts on the community.
A further hearing scheduled on October 10 will determine if Judge Damrell revises her ruling on the lawsuit, which was first filed at the beginning of this year, involving more than 90 defendants, including cardrooms and TPPs.
Image credit: California.com
