In a decision rendered by the Kentucky Supreme Court on Thursday, the case involving the seizure and potential forfeiture of 141 internet gambling domain names will return to the trial court and Judge Thomas Wingate. The decision read in part, “Because the trial court has not had the opportunity to address Petitioner’s claims, both as to standing and jurisdiction, they cannot establish standing to pursue the writ they seek.”
In essence, the Kentucky Supreme Court, which heard oral arguments in the case last October, ruled that the lower court should hear whether the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) and Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) have standing to intervene on behalf of the domain names at risk.
The Kentucky Supreme Court asserted, “This Court cannot justify granting a writ against the Franklin Circuit Court when that body has acted and ruled correctly thus far in this case regarding standing issues… Until the Circuit Court determines that the domain owners or registrants are properly before the court, no one has established standing to proceed on a writ action.”
In March, the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that iMEGA and other parties involved did not have standing to bring on legal action. At issue is whether domain names like PokerStars.com and FullTiltPoker.com, both of which were seized, constitute “gambling devices.” The five-syllable phrase is general reserved for tangible objects like slot machines and roulette wheels that you’d find in an underground casino.
Also in its March ruling, the State Supreme Court contended, “Although all such arguments may have merit, none can even be considered unless presented by a party with standing. No such party has appeared at the original proceedings in Franklin Circuit Court, the writ petition at the Court of Appeals, or on the appeal here to this Court.” Two years ago, the 141 URLs were seized, allegedly without due process.
In response to the Kentucky Supreme Court’s assertion that iMEGA and the IGC lacked standing, both trade organizations produced written affidavits saying that the owners of several of the domain names involved were members. iMEGA submitted an affidavit from Yatahay Limited, the owners of TruePoker.com, while the IGC submitted one from Pocket Kings, the owners of Full Tilt Poker’s domain.
To that end, iMEGA Chairman Joe Brennan charged, “We proved organizational standing based on the standard they laid out. The Court said that we needed to have at least one of our members come forward and provide an affidavit. That was based on case law, but for some reason, they’ve decided based on a technicality in procedure to send it back.” He added that none of the organization’s arguments was contested in today’s ruling; instead, the need to have the trial court evaluate the issue of standing took center stage throughout the 12-page decision.
Brennan summed up Thursday’s developments, telling Poker News Daily, “The issue regarding standing has not been disproved. The Kentucky Supreme Court said that our argument for standing should be presented to the trial court. Therefore, the issue was not ripe for the State Supreme Court to render a decision.” No date for oral arguments at the trial court level has been set.
Brennan added that with the process essentially returning to the beginning, Kentucky’s stance towards internet gambling will continue to be exposed: “This is uncomfortable for the Commonwealth because there’s going to be another public airing of the flimsy pretext they used to seize the domain names from the beginning. They’re going to trot out these arguments that have so far not held water with any of the courts except Wingate’s.” Kentucky officials permit online wagering on horse racing, the lifeblood of the Commonwealth’s economy. The state also has an online component of its lottery.
After the seizure orders were authorized in 2008, iMEGA and the IGC sought the intervention of the Kentucky Court of Appeals, which ruled by a 2:1 margin in January 2009 that the State did not have jurisdiction to act. One day later, Kentucky’s attorneys appealed to the State Supreme Court.
Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet Secretary J. Michael Brown serves as the primary face of the State in the legal proceedings. The case is numbered 2010-SC-000266-TG and 2010-CA-000587-OA. Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest legislative and legal headlines.