The DC Council and Mayor Muriel Bowser have apparently foiled an attempted lawsuit to recover hundreds of millions of dollar lost by DC residents who gambled.
The district’s city council approved a nearly $22 billion budget on Monday for FY2026.
Retroactive provision should quash DC Gambling Recovery lawsuit
A provision included in Mayor Muriel Bowser’s budget plan would put an end to a lawsuit filed by DC Gambling Recovery in February seeking the recovery of losses incurred by sports bettors since the district authorized regulated sports wagering in 2019. The provision exempts sports betting from loss recovery acts and work retroactively, rendering the lawsuit moot.
The group filed the suit against Caesars, FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM and Fanatics claiming they are owed over $300 million in restitution.
“It is fundamentally unfair for the council to retroactively attempt to extinguish a private right of action at issue in an ongoing lawsuit brought in the public interest for which the district has no liability and only financial upside,” said legal counsel for DC Gambling Recovery in a letter to the council. “Making this language prospective will cost the district nothing; making it retroactive could cost the district hundreds of millions of dollars.”
DC suit utilized centuries-old gambling recovery law
DC Gambling Recovery formed in Delaware just days before filing its suit in February.
The law at the heart of the lawsuit is a 300-year old provision called the Statute of Anne, which allow losing bettors to sue winners to recover losses. The centuries-old laws were implemented to protect the financial well-being of gamblers and allow third-party entities to recover losses as well discourage gambling in general.
This is not the first time a group has utilized the Statute of Anne, which is present in other states, to recover losses on behalf of gamblers.
The Statute of Anne laws were the focus of a 2010 lawsuit filed against Flutter Entertainment in Kentucky. In that instance, the state itself chose to sue PokerStars for loss recovery. The initial judgment would have required the site to pay out $1.3 billion to the state accounting for interest and treble damages, but the group eventually settled for $300 million instead.
Budget allows for in-person poker, blackjack, bingo
The budget also authorizes in-person blackjack, bingo and poker in D.C. while also making them exempt from Statute of Anne laws. Bingo, blackjack and poker are currently not legalized throughout the district.
The budget plan is headed to Bowser’s desk for signature following the council’s approval.
