Florida Sports activities Betting: Tribe’s Foes Search Extra Time in US Supreme Court docket
The businesses making an attempt to undo the Seminole Tribe’s monopoly on sports activities betting in Florida are asking the U.S. Supreme Court docket to permit them to attend till subsequent 12 months for decision of their federal case. Such a transfer would enable time for a state continuing to conclude.
The Supreme Court docket constructing in Washington, D.C. A brand new submitting is asking the court docket for extra time to hunt decision of a long-running case over Florida sports activities betting. (Picture: Mark Fischer/Artistic Commons)
The request is available in a filing submitted Monday by West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Corp., the Florida pari-mutuel operators who’re attempting to overturn the tribe’s gaming compact. The businesses say they want till February 9 to file a writ of certiorari asking the Supreme Court docket to overturn a choice from the U.S. Court docket of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that upheld the tribal gaming compact.
West Flagler says the delay is critical to provide the Florida Supreme Court docket time to resolve on a separate problem the businesses have filed. That seeks to invalidate Gov. Ron DeSantis’ (R) and the Florida legislature’s approval of the compact in 2021.
The gaming compact permits the Seminole Tribe to develop the video games supplied at its six casinos and to supply on-line sports activities betting by way of its Laborious Rock Bets platform. West Flagler has argued that the compact violates the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, in addition to the Florida structure. The deal would enable the tribe to supply gaming off its reservation. Defenders of the compact say it complies with the legislation as a result of the cellular sportsbook is hosted on pc servers which can be situated on Seminole land.
“This fiction was adopted to deem the Compact to be solely coping with gaming on Indian lands, and thereby to bypass a Florida constitutional ban on the growth of on line casino gaming absent a residents’ referendum, aside from on line casino gaming lined by a legitimate IGRA compact for gaming ‘on tribal lands,’” West Flagler’s legal professionals wrote within the request for a time extension Tuesday.
Sportsbook On-line With SCOTUS Keep Gone
In mid-October, Chief Justice John Roberts issued a keep stopping the compact from taking impact. However that maintain was lifted two weeks later.
After they first requested the keep, West Flagler and Bonita-Fort Myers stated they might file their full writ of certiorari by November 20. However that dedication was premised on the expectation {that a} keep would stay in place.
For the reason that keep was lifted, the Seminole Tribe has relaunched its Laborious Rock Bets platform in Florida for some prospects. As well as, the Florida Supreme Court docket has denied a request to expedite proceedings in its case. DeSantis should file a response by December 1 within the state case.
Now, opponents say that the final word end result of the state proceedings will affect how they current their case to the excessive court docket.
West Flagler owns the Bonita Springs Poker Room in southwest Florida. It additionally, till not too long ago, owned the Magic Metropolis On line casino in Miami.
‘Absurd Lure’ Attainable With out Delay
The federal court docket selections have been comparatively slim in scope. They maintain that the Inside Division, which oversees tribal gaming, solely has the authority to approve exercise that occurs on tribal lands, and that’s all of the division did on this case.
Questions over whether or not the tribe’s operation of a cellular sportsbook is allowed beneath state legislation is a separate query. However the DC Circuit did say that the tribal compact “can’t present unbiased authorized authority for gaming exercise that happens exterior of Indian lands, the place that exercise would in any other case violate state legislation,” in keeping with West Flagler’s submitting.
The businesses additionally level to an remark from Supreme Court docket Justice Brett Kavanaugh that there are “critical equal safety points” if “the Seminole Tribe—and solely the Seminole Tribe—[can] conduct sure off-reservation gaming operations in Florida.”
The Florida Supreme Court docket’s decision of the State Petition could also be related as to whether the reasoning of the Circuit Opinion is accepted, or whether or not as a substitute the Candidates are caught in an absurd entice between two judicial methods saying inconsistent issues concerning the nature of this Compact,” in keeping with West Flagler’s newest submitting.
If the Supreme Court docket doesn’t grant the businesses’ request, they must file a cert petition by December 11, 90 days after their D.C. Circuit rehearing request was denied.
