Jones Walker LLP is expanding its reach within the gaming industry by reopening its Tallahassee, Florida, office effective immediately. The new office expansion is the direct result of a successful and long-standing strategic alliance with Florida’s Dean Mead law firm. A total of nine attorneys and government relations professionals will join Jones Walker to maximize a larger client delivery … Continue Reading
Alabama In 2020, Governor Kay Ivey appointed a Gaming Task Force to study the feasibility of legalizing gaming in Alabama. Since voters rejected the last attempt in 1999 to amend the Alabama constitutional prohibition on gambling, numerous attempts to pass gaming legislation have failed. But with the proliferation of gaming in surrounding states, bingo casinos … Continue Reading
On June 10, 2021, the Louisiana Legislature advanced a key piece of sports wagering legislation, Senate Bill 247, to Governor John Bel Edwards. If signed into law, Senate Bill 247 will establish the all-important regulatory framework for the conduct of sports wagering in Louisiana and put certain parishes one step closer to offering sports wagering. … Continue Reading
In November 2020, voters in 55 of Louisiana’s 64 parishes voted to authorize sports wagering in their respective parishes. Sports wagering, however, is not yet being offered in the state because the Louisiana Legislature and Louisiana Gaming Control Board first need to implement operational-, tax-, and licensing-related rules to govern the activity. With the 2021 Regular … Continue Reading
Alabama In late 2019, the Birmingham Race Course placed 301 historical horse racing machines at its facility. The machines, known as historical pari-mutuel betting, allow users to place wagers on horse races that have already taken place. The machines use historical information from previously run races, allowing bettors to pick the favorites or handicap for … Continue Reading
Despite a significant effort to legalize sports wagering in Louisiana during the 2019 Legislative Session, sports wagering remains illegal in the Bayou State. Many expect that to change soon. In June 2020, Governor John Bel Edwards signed into law Senate Bill 130, which will give voters in each of Louisiana’s 64 parishes the ability to … Continue Reading
The Virginia Lottery Board will accept applications for sports betting permit holders beginning October 15, 2020. All applications for such permits must be filed on or before October 31, 2020. After October 31, 2020, applications for sports betting permits will not be accepted again until the next annual application period — May 15–31, 2021. The … Continue Reading
Even though the casinos in Louisiana and Mississippi continue to be closed under orders from the states’ governors and gaming regulators to address the coronavirus pandemic, we can speculate what a reopened gaming industry might look like in the Deep South once those orders are lifted. Prior to entry into a casino, guests may be … Continue Reading
With nearly all (980 of 989) commercial and tribal casinos in the United States closed, affecting more than 650,000 directly employed persons during the novel coronavirus shutdown, there are specific sets of issues facing the gaming industry. We summarize some of the more important ones below. Employee Issues Many gaming industry employers have taken one … Continue Reading
As confirmed by a spokesman for Speaker Schexnayder, the Louisiana legislature passed resolutions to suspend its business until March 31. This comes after a series of increasingly tough restrictions on public gatherings and commercial activity were announced including the closing of casinos and video poker truck stops until April 13. This puts a hard stop … Continue Reading
In Caldwell v. St. Charles Gaming (No. 2019-CC-1238), the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that a permanently moored riverboat casino engaged in dockside gaming is not a “vessel” under either the Jones Act or the General Maritime Law. Caldwell was employed as a technician by the Grand Palais Casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and was allegedly … Continue Reading
The Louisiana Supreme Court will soon consider whether the Grand Palais casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana, qualifies as a “vessel” under the Jones Act and general maritime law. Indeed, the Court recently granted certiorari and agreed to review the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal’s decision in Caldwell v. St Charles Gaming, 18-868 (La. App. … Continue Reading
We write with an update on the status of sports wagering in Louisiana. In our May 2019 article titled “Sports Wagering in Louisiana Might Be on the Horizon,” we provided an overview of Senate Bill 153, sponsored by Senator Danny Martiny (R-Metairie), and its efforts to legalize sports wagering in Louisiana. As of May 22, the date on … Continue Reading
With the introduction and serious consideration of Senate Bill 153 during the 2019 Regular Session, Louisiana is primed to join the growing number of states that have legalized sports wagering in recent years. Senate Bill 153, sponsored by Senator Danny Martiny (R-Metairie), would authorize sports wagering in Louisiana. The bill, if passed, would call for … Continue Reading
The 2019 session of the Louisiana Legislature began on April 8. Senator Danny Martiny (R-Metairie) has pre-filed a bill which would authorize sports betting on a parish-by-parish basis in the same way that daily fantasy sports (DFS) was legalized last year. Even though the Louisiana Senate Judiciary B Committee was the only place in the … Continue Reading
Jones Walker LLP gaming law partners J. Kelly Duncan, Nicole M. Duarte, Kirkland E. Reid, and Thomas B. Shepherd III, together with associate Christopher K. Ulfers, recently authored several chapters in the inaugural Chambers and Partners Global Practice Guide for “Gaming, Gambling & Licensing 2018.” The guide provides legal insight and commentary on key issues and … Continue Reading
J. Kelly Duncan, chair of the firm’s Gaming Practice Group, and Marc W. Dunbar, partner in the firm’s Gaming Practice Group in Florida, were both speakers during the International Masters of Gaming Law Masterclass held on February 8, 2017, in London, England, at the 2017 ICE Expo. Mr. Duncan moderated the discussion on “Effects of … Continue Reading
This summer, a concurrent resolution that creates a Riverboat Economic Development and Gaming Task Force (“Task Force”) was adopted during the regular session of the Louisiana State Legislature. The Task Force, to be chaired by Ronnie Jones, Chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board, is charged with (1) studying current law and existing rules and … Continue Reading
In recognition of the experience and depth of the Jones Walker gaming practice, firm attorneys were solicited to contribute five chapters to the 2016 edition of The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Gambling. The chapters written by Jones Walker gaming practitioners consist of current gaming regulations in the states of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and … Continue Reading
On November 2, 2015, members of the Georgia House and Senate Study Committees on the Preservation of the HOPE Scholarship Program met to consider testimony relative to expansion of gaming in the state to include casino gaming and pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing to supplement the funding shortfall that threaten the continued viability of the … Continue Reading
