15-Jul-09. Ontario rejects blame for gambler’s losses. Globe and Mail, A7.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. says that gambling addicts who keep coming back to casinos and racetracks despite joining a voluntary list of problem gamblers aren’t the responsibility of provincial authorities. The OLG is responding to a proposed $3.5-billion class-action lawsuit centred on a Markham, Ont., man who says his gambling addiction cost him his job and his life savings. At present, any of the 12,500 people in the province who have signed up for the program could be turned away from gambling venues if staff recognize them from their photos.

11-Jun-09. EU calls on U.S. to drop gambling ban. Globe and Mail, B6.

This newsbrief reports that the European Union yesterday urged the United States to open talks on ending a ban on foreign online gambling companies, saying it breaks global trade rules. The European Commission said the U.S. ban shut out gambling sites such as Britain’s PartyGaming PLC and Sportingbet PLC from the United States’ lucrative $4-billion (U.S.) market, causing companies to lose revenue and stock market value.

21-May-09. Quebec gaming commission ‘troubled’ by allegations it doctored a study. National Post, A4.

The president of the Quebec gaming commission said yesterday he is “troubled” by allegations his organization doctored a study critical of the government’s anti-gambling efforts. This comes a day after Quebec Public Security Minister Jacques Dupuis ordered an internal investigation following media reports that the commission tabled a whitewash study as evidence at a class-action lawsuit against Loto-Quebec launched last fall.

18-May-09. Lawsuit puts private management of casinos under scrutiny. Globe and Mail, A4.

Legal advice warning the Ontario government that it may be breaking the law by allowing private companies to run its casinos  has been resurrected as part of a $3.5-billion lawsuit that has  implications for other provinces. At issue is the 1985 Criminal Code amendment that legalized gambling by giving provincial governments the sole right to conduct lotteries or games of chance. Legal advice provided in 1996 to the Ontario government by now-defunct Toronto law firm Morris, Rose, Ledgett suggests that allowing private companies to manage casinos may be inconsistent with the “lawfulness of gaming activities.”

18-Apr-09. The big bluff. Globe and Mail, A1.

This lengthy article provdes additional details about a $3.5-billion lawsuit that was been filed against the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. on behalf of more than 10,000 problem gamblers. Those eligible to join the proposed class action are an estimated 10,428 gamblers who signed the self-exclusion contract between Dec. 1, 1999 and Feb. 10, 2005. The proposed class action also has implications for Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan, seven provinces that also have self-exclusion contracts and whose governments are responsible for enforcing them.

9-Apr-09. Gambler’s lawsuit blames casinos for loss of homes, job. Calgary Herald, A7.

Peter Dennis of Markham, Ontario claims casino staff didn’t do enough to keep him away from the slots is suing the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) for $3.5-billion.  Dennis, who has a history of gambling problems, claims to have lost more than $600,000 at Woodbine Racetrack and at Casino Rama, both in the Toronto area. The OLG says the self-exclusion program does not constitute a legal contract and it’s not something it can easily police.

8-Apr-09. Casinos let him wager, gambling addict sues. Globe and Mail, A7.

A man in Ontario has launched a $3.5-billion class action lawsuit against the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. for allowing him to keep gambling even though he had authorized them to stop him from entering casinos. Under the voluntary self-exclusion program started inthe mid-1990s, problem gamblers can sign a form authorizing the province’s gambling facilities to use their “best efforts” to keep them out or remove them if they enter. The proposed class action filed in Ontario Superior Court and served this week suggests the program was a sham that profited from the most vulnerable gamblers.

20-Nov-08. $100M suit charges lotto policy unfair. Edmonton Journal, A8.

Regina lawyer Tony Merchant has filed a class-action lawsuit against the Western Canadian Lottery Corp. and Saskatchewan lottery agencies. The suit involves the continued sale of scratch-and-win lottery tickets after big prizes have already been won. On average, a top prize is won after 50 per cent of lottery tickets are sold which means that half of these tickets are purchased by people when they no l onger have a chance to win the jackpot.

16-Sep-08. Addicted gamblers sue Loto-Québec. National Post, A7.

The hearing of a class-action lawsuit against Loto-Québec opened yesterday in Quebec City with the testimony of a former journalist Nelson Labrie who squandered $360,000 playing video lottery terminals (VLTs).  Labrie is part of a group of pathological gamblers who filed a class-action lawsuit seeking compensation for the province’s estimated 119,000 addicted gamblers. The lawyer for Loto-Québec said in his opening statement that no scientific study has proven that VLTs can cause addiction and added that the government is doing much to help problem gamblers deal with their addiction.

19-Aug-08. Quebec gambling addicts launch suit. Red Deer Advocate, C5.

A class-action lawsuit launched by a group of pathological gamblers is seeking compensation from Loto-Quebec for treatment. The plaintiffs claim 119,000 gamblers can trace their addictions to video lottery terminals (VLTs) which means a judgement could cost Loto-Quebec upwards of $500-million excluding damages. Launched in 2001 by Jean Brochu, a lawyer and recovering problem gambler, the lawsuit cites government reports that claim VLTs have been tied to pathological gambling.