The ongoing battle over gaming rights in Florida has taken another turn as Attorney General Ashley Moody steps in to request the dismissal of a petition filed by pari-mutuel betting operator West Flagler Associates. At the heart of the dispute lies the state’s gambling compact with the Seminole Tribe, forged in 2021, which has been fiercely contested by West Flagler.
The legal tussle was further stirred last month when the Seminole tribe, holders of exclusive gambling privileges in the state, reintroduced its Hard Rock Bet service. This service is an embodiment of the tribe’s assertive stance on their gambling arrangement with the state, sparking additional dissent from their challengers.
Ashley Moody, standing by the state’s position, outlined several reasons why the petition from West Flagler should be dropped. Salient among these is the criticism directed at the two-year delay that West Flagler took to initiate their legal grievance following the compact’s signature. Moody articulates that this procrastination diminishes the validity of the petition.
Moreover, the legal challenge mounted by West Flagler is thought to fail in meeting the necessary legal benchmarks, a sentiment echoed by Moody. A key point of contention is West Flagler’s assertion that sports betting falls under the umbrella of “casino gambling” as per the Florida Constitution—a claim that the Attorney General disputes in his formal submission to the Florida Supreme Court.
Given these rationales, Moody strongly advocates for the petition’s dismissal or denial, marking yet another chapter in an intricate legal saga that’s been ongoing for two years.
To date, West Flagler’s efforts have found little success in the courts, with failures in both the US District Court for the Northern District of Florida and the US District Court for the District of Columbia. Last month, their motion to temporarily halt Hard Rock Bet and its online sports betting operations was rejected by the Florida Supreme Court.
Despite legal impediments, the Seminole tribe is pressing on, set to broaden their offerings to include sports betting, roulette, and craps within their six casinos across Florida. This expansion will be celebrated with a lavish party at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood, where celebrities like Jon Bon Jovi, Mike Tyson, and Sofia Vergara will be attending.
Seminole Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr. took pride in announcing the expanded gaming capabilities, asserting that the tribe now offers an entire suite of casino games, aligning them with prestigious casinos globally.
The legal odyssey finds its origins in the affirmative nod given by DeSantis in 2021, allowing the Seminole tribe to exclusively offer sports betting in the state. The stride taken by the tribe was abruptly interrupted in December 2021 when a ruling out of the District of Columbia indicated the compact contravened the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). The controversy here centered on whether sports betting, as offered through servers based on tribal lands, equated to betting performed physically on the land.
Escalating their legal campaign in August this year, West Flagler endeavored to challenge the Secretary of Interior Debra Haaland in June but hit a wall. Additionally, in September, they launched a challenge against DeSantis and the Florida state legislature, alleging overstep in authority with the 2021 gaming compact’s approval.
Nonetheless, optimism for West Flagler’s opposition was dampened when the US Supreme Court dismissed their motion to stay in October. Without disentangling the legal intricacies entirely, this dismissal opened a window for the Seminoles to advance with Hard Rock Bet, reigniting once more just weeks later.
The dispute thus continues to enshroud Florida’s gaming scene with uncertainty, with stakeholders keeping a close eye on each new development in this legal chess game between the state, the Seminole Tribe, and the persistent challengers at West Flagler Associates.
