250% Extra + $125 Free Chip!
New players only. 250% on 1st Deposit + $125 Free Chip
Interstate online poker is officially legal as the dispute surrounding the Wire Act is officially over. The U.S. Department of Justice did not file an appeal in the lawsuit between the DOJ and the New Hampshire Lottery before the June 21 deadline.
As a result, the DOJ has accepted the latest ruling and will therefore not contest the possibility of interstate online poker compacts. The favourable ruling was done in January by the First Circuit Court of Appeals that said the Wire Act only applies to sports betting, and not all forms of online gambling. Hence interstate online poker is now a reality.
In January 2019, the DOJ released a memo that reversed its 2011 opinion on the legislation. The original law, passed in 1961, stated that using a “wire communication facility” for gambling purposes was illegal. The original legislature was intended to push back organized crime activity as illegal sports betting was one of the largest business ventures the mob was involved with/
When the federal government went after online poker in 2011 the Wire Act served as guidance. However, after ‘Black Friday’, the DOJ surprisingly issued a legal opinion that stated the Wire Act only applied to sports betting. So, with this statement, online poker would effectively be legal in the United States.
Since then, several states began legalizing and regulating online poker. At this time, online poker players could only compete against other players that were also within state borders. Gradually, the desire and necessity rose by players and operators to increase liquidity and form interstate agreements.
In 2014, the states of Delaware and Nevada decided to share player pools. After four years, New Jersey joined and players in those three states could finally play each other. At the time, WSOP.com was the only site licensed in all three states, making it the only provider eligible for the combined player pool. PokerStars and other New Jersey operators are not yet licensed in Nevada or Delaware.
In January 2019 however, the DOJ once again questioned the compact by stating that all forms of interstate online gambling were illegal. Consequently, interstate compacts dissolved, and states had to go back to intrastate online poker.
However, the New Hampshire Lottery filed a suit against the DOJ shortly after got a favourable ruling in June 2019 when a U.S. District Judge nudged the DOJ’s interpretation of the old legislature.
The DOJ immediately filed an appeal; however the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the process long enough so that the first appeal wasn’t heard until the beginning of this year.
At this time, the new White House administration of Joe Biden had expressed its intentions to revert to the 2011 view of the Wire Act and things were starting to look bright again for online poker in the U.S..
Since then, new states such as Pennsylvania and Michigan have licensed their online poker markets, with West Virginia and Connecticut officially having legalized the skill game as well. Other states are also moving in and progressing towards legislature on online poker. All in all, the recent developments are undoubtedly ‘bullish’ for poker enthusiasts in the U.S.