JUDGE SET TO HERE ARGUEMENTS IN IMEGA VS. IUGEA
A Federal Judge, Mary L. Cooper of the US District Court of Trenton, NJ will hear the matter of IMEGA vs. the legality of the UIGEA on Sept 4, 2007. This is a huge step forward in the battle against the Unlawful Internet Gambling Act which came into law last fall.
The IMEGA claims that the UIGEA is unconstitutional and therefore unenforceable on the grounds that it violates the 1st Amendments right to freedom of speech and commercial association as well as the 10th Amendment protections of states rights to regulate Online Gambling.
With the heat coming down on the US at the WTO with regards to the UIGEA it is quite possible that Judge Cooper will find it in violation of both constitutional Amendments.
IMEGA founder Joe Brennan who is a former executive of AOL had this to say:
"The Unlawful Internet Gambling Act can be enforced up until Sept 4/07 however we feel confident that Judge Cooper will prevent that from happening." He explains how enforcement of the UIGEA would make the judge's job more difficult as she will have to then sort through all the rules in addition to the complaint.
The Honorable Judge Cooper will be reviewing the legal briefs that have been submitted by the IMEGA's legal team and also the defendants in the case who are the DOJ, FTC and the Federal Reserve to rule on whether she will grant the request for a temporary TRO which will prevent the enforcement of the UIGEA.
Kudos to Brennan and his team for bring the American Government to task when they are not willing to play by the rules, laid down in the Constitution as well as the World Trade Organization. We will keep you informed and updated as to what is going on with this landmark case.