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Nearly two hours of oral arguments were heard before the US 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia today regarding NCAA v Christie.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association, along with the four professional sports leagues in the US, sued the state of New Jersey in an effort to prevent sports betting from becoming legalized there. NJ Governor Chris Christie signed into law a measure that would see sports betting offered in Atlantic City casinos as a means of increasing revenue.
Former Solicitor General Theodore Olson, arguing on behalf of New Jersey, claimed, among other things, that the tenth amendment restricts the federal government in exercise of commerce clause.
In early March, U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp sided with the four major pro sports leagues and the NCAA by rejecting New Jersey's constitutional challenge to the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which prohibits sports betting in all but four states including Nevada where sportsbook operations are quite profitable.
One of the three-panel judges appeared to stump the NCAA attorney when asked "What if New Jersey says you could only fill out an NCAA bracket at a casino, and if this would violate PASPA."
US Attorney Paul Fishman appeared perplexed, hesitated, then reluctantly claimed that such an activity would violate PASPA.
Olson cited a PASPA challenge filed by Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (IMEGA) claiming that PASPA’s limitations violated myriad provisions of the US Constitution.
- Chris Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
