« Environment - Stories this weekend | Main | Law - First Monday in October »
Sunday, October 03, 2004
Indiana Decisions - More on compulsive gambler suit
The Chicago Tribune has a story today on lawsuits against casinos, headlined "Early rulings won't get compulsive gamblers off the hook." It begins:
If a compulsive gambler asks a casino to bar him from the premises, yet he still gains entry, is the establishment liable for his losses?The decision referenced is Milan Stulajter v. Harrah's Indiana Corporation, et al. (5/20/04 IndCtApp). Access the ILB entry and a link to the case here (last decision in list).The early answer favors the house.
Milan Stulajter asked Harrah's in April 2001 to keep him out of its casinos. Nevertheless, the company continued to send him marketing materials in the mail. He returned to its East Chicago riverboat casino on several occasions and lost about $70,000.
He sued Harrah's for negligence for failing to stop him from gambling after he voluntarily placed himself on its self-exclusion list. Such lists and similar state exclusion programs recently have become the grounds for lawsuits from problem gamblers who believe casinos should be held responsible when they squander their money.
But courts aren't buying it. In May, the Indiana Court of Appeals upheld a lower court's decision to dismiss Stulajter's suit, finding that casinos have no duty to protect compulsive gamblers from themselves, even if players are on a blacklist. The ruling agreed with other state and federal courts that recently have let casinos off the hook.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 3, 2004 07:15 PM
Posted to Indiana Decisions