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Cases + Rulings Posts
Critical Crypto-Securities Issue May Soon Come to a Head in SEC v. Ripple
Feb 8, 2023
Critical Crypto-Securities Issue May Soon Come to a Head in SEC v. Ripple
This work was originally published in Business Law Today for the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section. A lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission (“SEC”) against Ripple Labs, Inc. (“Ripple Labs”), creator of the popular cryptocurrency token known as XRP, represents a turning point for the cryptocurrency and wider blockchain-technology industries in their…
Florida Sports Betting Opponents and Government Stakeholders Head to Oral Argument in Federal Appellate Court
Dec 15, 2022
Florida Sports Betting Opponents and Government Stakeholders Head to Oral Argument in Federal Appellate Court
This week’s oral argument in West Flagler Associates, Ltd. v. Haaland is the latest step in the dispute over whether the State of Florida and the Seminole Tribe of Florida can offer online sports betting throughout the state and not just on tribal land.
Four States Coordinate Against Metaverse Casino’s NFT Sales
Oct 25, 2022
Four States Coordinate Against Metaverse Casino’s NFT Sales
On Thursday, October 20th, state securities regulators from Alabama, Kentucky, New Jersey, and Texas filed coordinated enforcement actions to stop sales of non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) by an organization in the country of Georgia. The actions accuse Slotie NFT (“Slotie”) of “illegally and fraudulently selling NFTs to raise capital relating to gaming in online and metaverse…
State Securities Regulators Intervene In Virtual Casino NFT Sales
Apr 18, 2022
State Securities Regulators Intervene In Virtual Casino NFT Sales
State regulators in three states took the first steps in regulating non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) as securities, issuing cease-and-desist orders against the online casino developer Sand Vegas Casino Club (“Sand Vegas”) and its co-founders for allegedly offering unregistered securities and violating various other securities-related regulations. As we have written, NFTs use smart contracts to offer holders…
Fantasy Sports Passes the Test: New York High Court Rules Fantasy Sports Are Legal
Mar 22, 2022
Fantasy Sports Passes the Test: New York High Court Rules Fantasy Sports Are Legal
In the lull of a midweek break from March Madness, New York’s highest court made noise Tuesday when it finally handed down its fantasy sports ruling, confirming that fantasy sports contests are legal in the state. Fantasy sports players might not have even noticed it was a question: Tens of millions of people play fantasy…
Shaken to the Core
Sep 26, 2021
Shaken to the Core
This month in San Francisco, U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Apple must stop forcing game developers to exclusively use its payment system in their app purchases. With the ruling, app developers can include a link or other advertisement to facilitate alternative ways of paying for each app. The suit was brought…
A Comeback Victory: Appeals Court Says Monmouth Park Owner is Entitled to Recover Damages from NCAA and Sports Leagues
Sep 24, 2019
A Comeback Victory: Appeals Court Says Monmouth Park Owner is Entitled to Recover Damages from NCAA and Sports Leagues
It has been over a year since the Supreme Court found that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) was unconstitutional in Murphy v. NCAA, and countless states have legalized sports gambling in the time since, but the legal fallout from the Murphy case is still weaving its way from the courts. Early in…
New Hampshire Federal Court Finds Wire Act Is Limited to Gambling on Sporting Events
Jun 4, 2019
New Hampshire Federal Court Finds Wire Act Is Limited to Gambling on Sporting Events
On June 3, 2019, Judge Paul Barbadoro of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire issued a 60-page opinion holding that the Wire Act is limited to sports gambling. Judge Barbadoro’s opinion resolved litigation between the New Hampshire Lottery Commission, its service provider (NeoPollard), and the Department of Justice (DOJ), over…
DOJ High-Wire Act
Apr 29, 2019
DOJ High-Wire Act
Heavyweight parties are slugging it out in a lawsuit in the Granite State, and Ifrah Law is taking a lead role in protecting the interests of America’s rapidly growing online gaming industry. The New Hampshire civil case comes on the heels of the Department of Justice (DOJ) releasing an interpretation of the federal Wire Act…
Update on 1/14/19 OLC Wire Act Opinion – All Eyes on New Hampshire
Apr 9, 2019
Update on 1/14/19 OLC Wire Act Opinion – All Eyes on New Hampshire
(This post was originally published on 1/15/2019 and updated on 4/8/2019) On Jan. 14, 2019, the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion reversing its 2011 position on the Wire Act and sports betting, contradicting not just itself but decisions by at least two District Courts and dicta by the U.S. Supreme…
