Stake and Game Providers Named In California Civil Suit

While California's AB 831, an anti-sweepstakes casino bill, is headed to the Senate for a vote, the state itself is still pursuing certain operators. 

As of Thursday, Aug. 28, the state of California has filed a civil suit against Sweepsteaks Ltd., which operates the sweepstakes platform, Stake.us. 

More About The Suit

In addition to Stake.us, the suit also mentions Kick, a streaming platform operated by Stake. 

Other defendants in the case, California v. Sweepsteaks Ltd, et al include the following providers/outfits:

• Big Time Gaming
• Evolution
• Hacksaw Gaming
• NetEnt
• No Limit City
• Pragmatic Play
• Red Tiger Gaming

In the complaint, the defendants are accused of collaborating with an operator to provide an illegal gambling ring and allowing residents to play. 

The suit is asking the court to issue injunctions and impose penalties on those named. 

Stake.us has been involved in suits in the past, but this is a first for a state government. 

This Suit Is Different

As mentioned, there have been other suits against Stake.us and other sweepstakes operators, but these were brought by individuals or in class-action lawsuits. 

Those cases, though, are usually referred to arbitration due to the terms of use on the sweepstakes casinos' website. 

This suit is unique in that the plaintiff, the state of California, hasn't used the site. 

Naming suppliers like Evolution and Hacksaw Gaming is significant. These providers not only provide things to sweepstakes casinos, but also to legal online casinos and retail outlets, too. 

Evolution is a publicly traded company. 

The list of defendants also includes individuals' names who could be potentially held liable. 

Recent Stake.us News

In July, it was announced that Stake.us would be leaving Arizona. In leaving Arizona, Stake.us officially pulled out of states like Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia. 

California isn't listed, so it could be possible that they leave California, too. 

Additionally, in May, a case involving plaintiff Dennis Boyle and Stake.us was sent to arbitration due to the terms of use on the site. 

“The Court can only conclude that there is no procedural unconscionability as Boyle has failed to meet his burden,” US Central California District Court Judge James Selna said. “Therefore, the Court finds that Boyle must arbitrate his claims with Sweepsteaks.”