Bad Actor clause and the Illinois gambling bill

Monday, 18 Mar, 2013

The Illinois state online gambling bill hasn’t been approved yet, but the legal instances are developing the policies that will regulate this new market and its licensing process.

The bill Illinois gambling bill draft, 1739, coined a Bad Actor clause which forbids licensing casino sites that had previously accepted US internet wagers, going  against the US laws, in the last 10 years. Many online operators claimed the Bad Actor term was legally harmful for their businesses and would imply different legal connotations.

The Illinois Senate has modified the term and the bill now reads “… convicted of accepting wagers”, meaning that online operators can be licensed if they have not been convicted for illegally accepting a US punter.

The 1739 bill has been approved by the Illinois State Senate Committee and may soon be approved by the state governor.  If approved, Illinois may become the fourth US state to legalize online gambling.