Florida Supreme Court rejects challenge to Seminole Tribe’s online sports betting monopoly
State’s highest court rules that opponents filed wrong type of petition in challenge to Seminoles’ compact with Governor Ron DeSantis
Opponents of online sports betting in Florida were dealt a significant blow on March 21 when the Florida Supreme Court denied a challenge to the Seminole Tribe’s mobile betting monopoly, ruling that the challengers filed the wrong type of petition.
The ruling becomes the latest setback for West Flagler Associates and Bonita-Fort Myers Corporation, which operate pari-mutuel racetracks in Florida and have been waging a protracted legal battle against the 2021 compact between the Seminole Tribe and the administration of Governor Ron DeSantis that paved the way for the Seminoles to exclusively roll out legalized sports betting in the Sunshine State.
As part of their ruling, the justices wrote that in filing a writ of quo warranto, the challengers incorrectly petitioned against the state’s right to authorize the compact when they should have filed a petition against the compact’s constitutionality.
“This court has never permitted use of the writ in the manner which Petitioners seek – to address the substantive constitutionality of an enacted law,” the justices wrote.
The ruling allows the Seminoles to continue to offer online sports betting in Florida after a series of legal victories in 2023 enabled the tribe to exclusively relaunch the Hard Rock Bet brand in December following a two-year hiatus that began with West Flagler’s initial challenge to the compact.
West Flagler and Bonita-Fort Myers will have the opportunity to file a motion for a rehearing, an option they would likely figure to exercise but have yet to publicly comment on or confirm.
The two parties are also waiting to learn if the US Supreme Court will hear the case as part of their federal challenge to the compact.