West Flagler writes to US Supreme Court over latest Florida decision
Parimutuel operator notes state’s Supreme Court ruling is based on limits of quo warranto rather than questions presented in petition
West Flagler has drawn the US Supreme Court’s attention to a recent ruling by the Florida Supreme Court, which gave its backing to the Seminole Tribe in the ongoing legal battle in the Sunshine State.
On March 21, the Florida Supreme Court denied West Flagler’s petition for a writ of quo warranto after ruling the parimutuel operator had incorrectly petitioned against the state’s right to authorize a compact that effectively allows the Seminoles a sports betting monopoly in the state.
The compact, agreed in 2021, permits the Seminole Tribe and its Hard Rock subsidiary to operate in Florida, with those operations resuming in late 2023 after a two-year hiatus.
West Flagler also highlighted that the Florida Supreme Court’s description of the compact between the Seminole Tribe and the State of Florida – the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) – said it “authorizes” online sports betting.
The court’s decision read: “Among other forms of gaming, the compact authorizes mobile sports betting by which participants may play sports wagers with the Seminole Tribe through a mobile device.
“Participants may be physically located anywhere in Florida when they place a wager, not only on tribal lands. Then, regardless of where the bets are placed, the wagers are ‘deemed’ to occur on tribal lands.”
However, West Flager said this statement was in direct conflict with the June 2023 ruling by the DC District Court, that ruled the Florida gaming compact would not allow the Seminole Tribe to offer state-wide gambling.
The US Department of the Interior has until April 12 to respond to West Flagler’s latest submission to the Florida court.
Hard Rock Bet, the online and retail sportsbook brand operated by the Seminole Gaming subsidiary Hard Rock Digital, went live in Florida in early December 2023 despite the ongoing legal case.
This latest update in the drawn-out legal battle comes after the Department of the Interior declared Florida-style tribal agreements permissible.
In a draft regulatory update, the government reaffirmed the legality of “hub-and-spoke” compacts akin to the agreement in Florida with the Seminole Tribe.