Interstate Online Gambling
(by Natasha Bach, Fortune and an AP news report) – The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) now says that all internet gambling between states is illegal.
Though the Interstate Wire Act has been re-interpreted to allow some forms of online gambling, the DoJ still claims that the Wire Act makes Internet sports gambling illegal. Passed in 1961, the Interstate Wire Act continues to have a massive impact on the US gambling market more than fifty years later. Beginning in 2011, businesses involved in non-sports-related interstate ongoing gambling had good reason to believe that certain prohibitions pertaining to the knowing use of a wire communication facility to place bets or wagers, assist in placing bets or wagers, and/or transmit information assisting in placing bets or wagers did not apply to them. Thus, any form of interstate gambling whether a lottery, poker, or traditional casino game is prohibited. After the widespread uproar of this new DOJ memo upending online. Originally published in The Green Sheet, April 22, 2019. Beginning in 2011, businesses involved in non-sports-related interstate ongoing gambling had good reason to believe that certain prohibitions pertaining to the knowing use of a wire communication facility to place bets or wagers, assist in placing bets or wagers, and/or transmit information assisting in placing bets or wagers did not.
A November opinion made public Monday reversed a 2011 opinion on the Wire Act, which established the law as applicable to only sports betting. The DOJ [says] that the 2011 opinion misinterpreted the statute and reinterprets the Wire Act to apply to any form of gambling that crosses state lines, not just sports betting.
The opinion could have wide-reaching effects in states that sell lottery tickets online or where online gambling is legal. This number has increased in recent months following the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize sports betting in the U.S. last year [which permits each state to allow sports betting within the state].
…While the precise effects of the change are unclear, lobbyists told The Washington Post that it could affect interstate compacts and lotteries.
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Tuesday issued a memo saying the Department of Justice will wait 90 days to implement the ruling. The delay will allow businesses to adjust their operations.
Legal experts say casino operators and online lotteries will likely take the issue to court.
Interstate Online Gambling Games
From Fortune .com and AP. Reprinted here for educational purposes only. May not be reproduced on other websites without permission.