The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to block a federal appeals court ruling that allows the Seminole Tribe to provide online sports betting products and services in the state of Florida.
According to a brief unsigned order, the court turned down a request by the legal team representing two casinos in Florida to put the appeal court’s decision on hold while they sought a Supreme Court review.
The case centers on a gaming compact agreed with the Seminole Tribe of Florida that would have granted the tribe exclusive rights to provide online sports betting in Florida. On October 12th, Chief Justice John Roberts of the Supreme Court placed a temporary stay on the appeals-court ruling. However, the Justices have now made their decision to lift the hold and allow the appeal’s court ruling to stand.
The original compact was agreed in 2021 and allowed the Seminole Tribe to accept online sports wagers once servers for were located on tribal lands. Once the Department of the Interior did not act on the compact, it went into effect 45 days later in August of 2021.
Following this, two local casinos went to court to challenge the approval of the compact. At the time, U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich agreed with the casinos’ request to rule against the approval of the compact.
In a statement, Justice Brett Kavanaugh agreed with the decision not to put the D.C. Circuit’s decision on hold. However, he did noted that the effect of the court’s order was limited and stated that the 2021 gambling legislation “raises serious equal protection issues.”
Gary Bitner, a spokesperson for the Seminole Tribe said:
“The denial of the stay by the U.S. Supreme Court is very good news. The Seminole Tribe of Florida is heartened by this decision.”
Department of Interior Pushed for Resolution
News of the court ruling comes just days after the U.S. Department of the Interior pushed the Supreme Court to allow the appeals court ruling to move ahead. U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar filed a 29-page response disputing arguments raised by the pari-mutuel companies.
However, despite the Dept. of the Interior’s position and the Supreme Court’s decision, it’s likely that there will be further challenges to the compact.
An experienced iGaming commentator and analyst based in New York City - Jenny reports on regulation and gambling industry news and events.