In December, the Seminole Tribe of Florida plans to introduce sports betting and roulette at its six casinos in Florida.
The Seminoles would be able to put an end to their turbulent history. In April 2021 the tribe signed a new gambling compact with Florida, which was approved by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
The Seminole Tribe was unable to implement its gambling expansion plans sooner due to a series of legal issues. The tribe claims that recent events have cleared the way to its launch.
The Seminole Casino Coconut Creek, Seminole Classic Casino Hollywood and Seminole Hotel & Casino Hollywood will all launch sports betting, craps and roulette on the 7th of December. Seminole Casino Coconut Creek will be followed by the Seminole Classic Casino in Hollywood and Seminole Casino Coconut Creek a day after.
Seminole Casino Immokalee, and Seminole Casino Brighton will open on the 11th of December. To mark this occasion, the tribe will be hosting a number of special events. Further details on these will be announced at a later date.
Seminole Chair hails “historical legal victory”
Seminole Tribe Chairman Marcellus Osceola, Jr. thanked the State of Florida and the US Department of the Interior for their defense of our compact. By working together, tribe, state, and federal governments achieved an historic legal win.
DeSantis, the governor of Florida also welcomed these plans and said that the plan’s launch would help the state move forward.
DeSantis stated that the new initiative would create jobs, boost tourism and generate billions of dollars in additional revenue to our state. I was honored to have worked with the Tribe on our historic gambling compact, and look forward to seeing it fully implemented.
Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming, echoed those comments. According to him, the compact is expected to create more than 1,000 jobs.
Allen stated that “this is an historic milestone which immediately places Florida on the same level as the great gambling destinations around the globe.”
Last week, the legal victory referred to was achieved. The US Supreme Court rejected West Flagler’s motion to remain in Florida. This effectively cleared the way for Seminoles’ launch.
West Flagler will have until the 11th of December to submit a certiorari writ with the Supreme Court. A certiorari order is issued by a superior court to review a case that was initially heard in a lower level court.
What brought us here?
Hard Rock Bet was to be launched in December 2021, when the District of Colombia ruled that the Seminole Tribe’s gaming compact violated Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). This screeched into a halt when, in December 2021, the District of Colombia ruled that the Seminole Tribe’s gaming compact violated the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
The ruling was made after West Flagler, Bonita Fort Myers and other tribes filed a lawsuit challenging whether online betting in the state through servers located on tribal lands could be considered betting on tribal lands.
The DC District Court of Appeals reversed the ruling in June 2023. The Seminoles were once more given free rein in Florida.
West Flagler and other legal entities fought back and forth over this. West Flagler requested a hearing in August for the lost case against Debra haaland, the secretary of interior.
West Flagler suffered a second blow after Circuit Court Judges rejected their allegations that Haaland had violated the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to act on the DeSantis-approved 2021 Compact and allowing the law to become effective 45 days later.
West Flagler takes on Florida and DeSantis
West Flagler, as part of its ongoing campaign against DeSantis, also brought a lawsuit in September. It claimed that DeSantis had “exceeded” his authority by initially approving this compact.
The DC Circuit Court of Appeals denied the rehearing. West Flagler then filed a stay motion in preparation for its appeal at the Supreme Court.
The DOI challenged the stay motion, saying West Flagler did not comply with the certiorari conditions. The DC Circuit Court ultimately denied the motion.
West Flagler was not defeated. West Flagler, along with Bonita Fort Myers and the Seminole Tribe requested that the Supreme Court stop the Seminole Tribe’s Hard Rock Bet.
The Supreme Court approved the operators’ temporary stay request. Last week’s decision, however, seems to have been the last nail in their legal coffin.
