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Kentucky court overturns seizure of gambling sites
Friday, February 21, 2014 - LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky’s efforts to seize 132 Internet gambling domain names is on hold after an appeals court ruled Friday that a trade association may represent the owners of the sites trying to fend off forfeiture proceedings.
The decision by the Kentucky Court of Appeals allows the Interactive Gaming Council to step into the 6-year-old case and, at least temporarily, keep the identities of the owners of various Internet gambling sites from being publicly revealed.
Judge Allison Jones, writing for a unanimous three-judge panel, noted that Kentucky has treated the domain names as a group for much of the litigation but wants to handle them individually now to prevent the trade association from becoming involved.
“The Commonwealth cannot now turn the tables and ask the court to require each domain name owner to come forward individually and assert virtually identical legal arguments through separate counsel to resolve threshold, purely legal issues that affect the validity of the entire forfeiture procedure,” Jones wrote.
The appeals court sent the case back to Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas D. Wingate for further hearings.
“Obviously, we consider this a win,” said Interactive Gaming Council CEO Keith Furlong. “We are also proud to be a catalyst for this decision which provides guidance to all associations seeking to represent their members in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”
Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) Appoints New Chief Executive
New Chief Executive announced at London International Casino Exposition (ICE), IGC Board applauds work of outgoing CEO FitzGerald
Vancouver, British Columbia – February 4, 2014 – The Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) announced the selection of Keith Furlong as the trade association’s new Chief Executive Officer. Furlong will replace outgoing CEO John Kennedy FitzGerald.
“John FitzGerald led our organization through the challenges immediately following passage of UIGEA in the U.S. His sound counsel has been particularly instrumental in advancing lobbying efforts throughout Canada,” said IGC Chairman John Anderson.
Furlong, who served as IGC Deputy Executive Director since 2000, has been involved with casino regulation and online gaming for over fifteen years. He previously served as the Public Information Officer and Legislative Liaison for the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement in the Attorney General’s Office. He will remain as a member of the IGC Board of Directors. His prior service on the Board was due to his position as Vice President and Principal of Catania Gaming Consultants, an international gaming consultancy.
“Keith’s combined experience as a former New Jersey gaming regulator with a strong knowledge of the IGC’s long history advocating for fair and sensible online gaming regulations worldwide,” said Chairman Anderson.
“I am thrilled to be given an opportunity to work alongside a Board of Directors with their extensive business experience to lead the IGC forward,” said Furlong.
The IGC continues to be a voice for the responsible interactive gaming industry, making the case for regulation and player protection to governments, gaming regulators and policy makers throughout the world. The IGC continues to emphasize that perceived problems of underage and problem gambling can best be resolved through a combination of up-to-date technology, proper internal controls and regulatory oversight.
“This is a challenging time period in the online gaming industry, with many jurisdictions either implementing or considering the adoption of online gaming regulation and taxation,” added Chairman Anderson. “I am confident that Keith will be an asset as the IGC pursues opportunities on behalf of our membership.”
Inquiries - Contact Keith Furlong ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) 1-732-687-0880
Ifrah Law’s Three iGaming Predictions for 2014
The year saw the enactment of online gaming in New Jersey and online poker in Nevada and Delaware, but also saw a district court judge and then a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit block New Jersey from proceeding with sports betting. During 2013, a number of the individual defendants charged in the Black Friday case in the Southern District of New York settled their cases, and the former customers of Full Tilt Poker saw the beginnings of the remission process that is promised to return to them some or all of the money they had on deposit with Full Tilt at the time of the April 2011 seizures.
After a year filled with so many changes, we naturally are looking forward to see what will happen in the internet gaming industry in 2014. Here are a few of our predictions: