The Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled that the province’s regulated online gaming websites can legally allow gamblers in the province to play with people outside of Canada.
The precedent-setting legal opinion—which was opposed by lottery and gaming agencies from nearly every other province in the country—could open the door to Ontarians playing peer-to-peer games, like online poker and daily fantasy sports, against players located outside of Canada.
Four judges ruled in support of the measure in a decision issued on the court’s website Wednesday afternoon, with one dissenting judge ruling against.
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According to Chief Justice Michael Tulloch, “a majority of the court has concluded that online gaming and sports betting would remain lawful” under Ontario’s proposed plan. The decision is based on the court’s interpretation of the Criminal Code.
It’s unclear how this would affect the province’s short-term ambitions for internet gambling. A Ministry of the Attorney General representative stated in an email that they “cannot provide comment on a court matter that remains within the appeal period.”
An appeal of the decision to the Supreme Court of Canada is possible. The lottery and gaming agencies that opposed Ontario’s plan — those that manage gambling in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the four Atlantic provinces — say in a court document from the case that they were concerned that it “could lead to the further proliferation of illegal online gambling in the jurisdictions in which they operate.”
Appeal to Supreme Court possible, lawyer says
That group, called the Canadian Lottery Coalition, said in a statement to CBC News Wednesday that it was “encouraged” that the court’s decision “recognized that players in our jurisdictions cannot be permitted to participate in games or betting, unless an agreement is in place with our provinces.”
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