*** BREAKING *** Wire Act re-re-interpreted by US Appeals Court -- very favorable to online poker & online casinos
Too bad Sheldon isn't around to see this.
Somewhat thanks to his lobbying, he was able to get the DOJ to reverse their 2011 reinterpretation of the 1961 Wire Act -- the original law cited which made it illegal to gamble online in the US. (Notice the year of 1961, before the internet existed. However, this was extended and perverted to apply to internet betting -- something long challenged.) This occurred in 2017, and threatened the existence of online poker and online gambling across state lines, which would have made sites like wsop.com illegal (as they have a player pool in New Jersey, Delaware, and Nevada playing together). It also would have prevented further expansion of states combining to provide online poker.
This morning, US Appeals Court for the First Circuit re-interpreted it again, this time because the New Hampshire Lottery was challenging it.
The new re-interpretation -- which I call a re-re-interpretation -- returns it to the late 2011 state, meaning it only applies to sportsbetting!
This means it remains LEGAL for online poker to cross state lines, and Sheldon's one victory against online poker has just been nullified!
:yes
Here is the decision: http://media.ca1.uscourts.gov/pdf.op...-1835P-01A.pdf
The most relevant portion is at the end, on page 49:
Quote:
In conclusion, we find that the plaintiffs' claims are justiciable and that the Wire Act applies only to interstate wire communications related to sporting events or contests. Therefore, we affirm the district court's grant of the plaintiffs' motions for summary judgment and its denial of the government's motion to dismiss and motion for summary judgment, but, given that declaratory relief under the Declaratory Judgment Act is sufficient, we vacate the district court's grant of relief under the APA.
Cliffs: Sportsbets cannot cross state lines. Everything else in gambling can.
