California tribes sue cardroom over 'illegal house-banked' games

Posted: 2 January 2025, 03:51 pm.

Last updated: January 2, 2025, 03:51 PM.

A lawsuit filed by a coalition of California tribal operators accuses the cardroom industry of offering illegal gambling in violation of the state Constitution and the California Penal Code.

The lawsuit, filed Jan. 1 in California Superior Court, may be the first of many such complaints against the cardroom. Tribes have long complained that some of the games offered by these venues are illegal and violate tribal exclusivity on house-banked casino games, but they previously lacked legal recourse to challenge them.

Generally, state courts lack jurisdiction over tribes, which are sovereign nations. Meanwhile, federal courts do not interfere with California's internal gaming laws.

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Last year, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Tribal Nations Access to Justice Act, which opens a window for tribes to apply to the courts for limited declaratory relief. Although they cannot claim monetary damages, they can adjudicate on the legality of the games.

The lawsuit is signed by seven of the state's 63 tribal operators, including the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla, the Pechanga Band of Indians, the Kumeyaay Nation and the San Manuel Nation.

The subject of the tribes' ire is the so-called “California Game.” These versions of popular casino table games such as blackjack and pai gow poker are intended to avoid restrictions on house-banked games by taking a rake with each hand. They also allow players to play in a rotating dealer position just like regular poker cash games.

But most of the rules of the game, either as written or as per card room interpretation, do not require the actual rotation of the bank – only its offering,'' the lawsuit complains. “Thus, a single player can bank the game uninterrupted, as occurs in Nevada and New Jersey style bank games, when no other player accepts the bank offer.”

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Cardrooms also employ state-licensed third parties to “shill” at the dealer location because players do not always want to act as dealers. The tribes argue that these companies, known as TPPPs, are a de facto “bank” when combined with the card room's “refusal and failure” to turn the bank from player-to-player.

“The California Constitution gives tribes the exclusive right to offer blackjack, baccarat and other banked games in tribal casinos,” said Adam Lauridsen, an attorney for the tribes. casino.org In a statement on Thursday.

As part of exercising their rights, tribes have collectively contributed millions to the California state budget through gaming-compact payments and provided vital services to broader communities,” Lauridsen added. “Cardrooms have shamelessly rejected this voter-approved framework and have begun offering illegal Vegas-style games instead.”

The California Gaming Association, which advocates for cardrooms, has previously said that without California Games, many cardrooms would be forced to close, potentially eliminating thousands of jobs.