- The US Department of Justice is still trying to make its recent reinterpretation of the 1961 Wire Act the law of the land.
- Last week, the DOJ filed a Notice of Appeal in the case against the NHLC.
- Prior, the DOJ had directed law enforcement officials to delay any criminal or civil actions until at least the end of 2019.
The US Department of Justice is still trying to make its recent reinterpretation of the 1961 Wire Act the law of the land despite a ruling in June by a federal judge that only “bets or wagers on a sporting event or contest” are restricted by the Act.
Last week, the DOJ filed a Notice of Appeal in the case against the New Hampshire Lottery Commission (NHLC), indicating that it plans to continue to pursue potential enforcement of it revised opinion.
Industry advocacy group iDEA (the iDevelopment and Economic Association) quickly responded to the filing calling it “hardly unexpected” and “certainly unwarranted.”
“DOJ generally files appeals of adverse district court decisions as a matter of course,” said iDEA founder and prominent online gaming attorney Jeff Ifrah in a press release.
“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,” Ifrah added.
