iGB: Germany player losses cases remain in limbo as ECJ opinion fails to address German law uncertainties

by Nicole Macedo

A new case opinion about ECJ player losses has ruled cases brought against operators without local licences are not an abuse of EU law.

Hundreds of player losses cases in Germany face further delays after an opinion released by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has failed to determine whether Germany’s gambling treaty was compatible with EU law. 

However, the opinion deemed the court had been provided with sufficient information to assess the compatibility of German law with EU law. 

Read the whole article on iGB.

TIME Law News 1/25

The new edition of TIME Law News (01/25) has just been published with articles reporting on developments in online gambling news and AI news:
https://lnkd.in/dgJmaME3

Does Germany’s new government have a shot at tackling illegal gambling?

By Imogen Goodman, iGB

Imogen Goodman considers how a federal intervention from Germany’s new coalition government could improve the sector’s fight against illegal gambling.

In their coalition pact released on 9 April, the incoming government in Germany set itself another ambitious goal: tackling the rampant illegal gambling sector.  

“Together with the federal states, we will improve the fight against illegal gambling,” the parties write on page 92. A brief statement, but in the eyes of many industry spectators, one that could prove significant.  

Germany’s new government has a daunting task ahead of it when it enters office on 6 May. In recent years, the country’s economy has been buckling under the weight of numerous structural problems, from an aging population to endless red tape.

Together, the centre-right alliance of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) are tasked with getting the country back on its feet.

So far, the parties have set out a range of plans to do just that: a €500 billion infrastructure fund, a bonfire of bureaucracy, incentives for employees to work overtime and cuts in corporation tax from 2028. 

Read the whole article on iGB

Could the ECJ signal an end to player losses cases in Germany?

By Nicole Macedo, iGB

A European Court of Justice (ECJ) hearing that started on 9 April threatens to dismantle the player losses cases model in Germany.

German and Austrian regional courts have processed upwards of 20,000 cases brought by players seeking to retrieve losses from gambling companies, prior to the current State Treaty on Gambling, which came into force in 2021. But today a number of these player losses cases have reached the ECJ, as they have raised broader questions of whether German regulations contradict European law.

These player losses cases, first brought to regional court in 2018, have questioned German gambling law under the previous treaty, but thousands have been settled either in or out of court over the years.

Read the whole article on iGB

Player Refund Saga Set for Major Test in Europe’s Top Court

The first of three pivotal cases, which could wreck or restart thousands of German player refund claims, will be heard next month at Europe’s highest court.

Read the whole VIXIO article here.