Two Florida gaming firms want to put a quick stop to the return of statewide online sports betting.
West Flagler Associates Ltd., Bonita-Fort Myers Corp., and Isadore Havenick (vice president of both companies) filed a motion with the Supreme Court of Florida on Tuesday asking it to “immediately suspend the sports betting provisions” of state law.
“This exigency has been created by the launch of the Seminole Tribe’s mobile betting application on November 7, 2023, without prior warning,” the companies wrote in their filing.
BREAKING: West Flagler files motion with the Florida Supreme Court to "expedite" consideration of its request for "all writs" relief to "immediately suspend" Florida's sports betting law pending a final ruling in the case; says "exigency" has been created by the Seminole Tribe's… pic.twitter.com/NWR06w3nE1
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) November 8, 2023
Hard Rock Bet relaunched in Florida on a limited basis on Tuesday, allowing existing customers to test the online sportsbook. Hard Rock was briefly live in the state in 2021 before it shut down following a judgment that set aside federal approval of a gaming compact between the state of Florida and its Seminole Tribe, which owns the casino and sports betting brand.
The legal fight over sports betting in Florida has gone on for more than two years, but recent decisions in federal appeals court went in favor of the Seminole. The tribe announced recently it would launch retail sports betting, craps, and roulette at its six casinos in Florida in December but made no mention of online sports wagering. Then, on Tuesday, Hard Rock users reported the app was again accepting action in the state.
Online sports betting is the root of the legal dispute. A 2021 compact between the state and the Seminole granted the tribe control over sports betting in Florida, in addition to the right to offer craps and roulette at their casinos. However, the inclusion of statewide online sports betting prompted pushback from West Flagler and its allies, who claim the mobile wagering taking place off tribal lands violates federal and state law.
Billable hours adding up
One of the legal challenges is making its way through the Supreme Court of Florida, an effort that began relatively recently. The West Flagler group is asking the court to shut down the online sports betting provisions of the Seminole-Florida gaming compact via a so-called writ of quo warranto.
Gov. Ron DeSantis sought and received an extension to the deadline for filing a response to the initial petition, with that reply not due now until Dec. 1. West Flagler wrote in its motion on Tuesday that this means it is unlikely the Florida Supreme Court will render a final ruling on the petition “until later” in 2024.
“In the meantime, absent an expedited ruling on Petitioners’ ‘all writs’ request, the Tribe will apparently continue with its off-reservation sports betting operations in contravention of the Florida Constitution… and Justice [Brett] Kavanaugh’s statement… potentially raking in millions of dollars in sports bets that this Court may eventually find were authorized in contravention of the Florida Constitution and derogation of the People’s right to decide on the expansion of casino gambling,” the West Flagler motion from Tuesday states.
“More importantly, even if this Court ultimately enforces the citizens’ will as expressed in article X, section 30 of the Florida Constitution, Florida’s citizenry will be irreparably harmed in the interim since the Tribe’s mobile sports betting was ostensibly authorized through Respondent’s usurpation of the People’s constitutional power; this is true even if this violation only occurs for a short time while a final ruling on the Petition is pending.”
The West Flagler group also contends “no irreparable harm” will befall the other side if online sports betting is again shut down. A response to the emergency petition was not yet filed as of Wednesday morning.
“The sports betting provisions of the Implementing Law represent a paradigm shift in Florida’s approach to tribal gaming that is inapposite to article X, section 30 of the Florida Constitution,” the West Flagler group alleges. “A temporary suspension of the offending provisions of the Implementing Law—which will ensure the status quo, i.e., no sports betting statewide—will therefore have no impact on the Court’s authority to afford any relief in this proceeding.”
