New Jersey Sports Betting Law Overturned By Federal Appeals Court

In bad news for sports gamblers in New Jersey earlier this week a federal appeals court ruled that New Jersey cannot legalise sports betting.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia said that the 2014 law which allowed sports betting at casinos and racetracks is in violation of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992. The Act bans sports gambling in all states other than Nevada, Delaware, Montana and Oregon.

Circuit Judge Marjorie Rendell said that because the Act bans states from “authorizing by law sports gambling” and because New Jersey’s 2014 law does exactly that it violates federal law.

The latest ruling comes as a blow to Republican Governor Chris Christie who has seen courts overturn two state laws which were designed to raise revenue through sports betting.

However, the ruling is a victory for various sports associations, such as the NBS and the NFL, which have long opposed New Jersey’s laws as they are worried about the potential for corruption that gambling may result in.

New Jersey has argued that the law was only a “partial repeal” of its prohibitions on sports betting and would help and cut back the “thriving” sports betting black market.

The law banned betting on state college teams and limited bets to people aged 21 and above at casinos and racetracks.

There was one judge that thought that the law was permissible while another thought it was unconstitutional as it violated state sovereignty. It is likely that New Jersey will now appeal and the case could go to the Supreme Court.