CrownBet Pty Ltd v State of New South Wales [2017] NSWSC 1470

CrownBet Pty Ltd v State of New South Wales [2017] NSWSC 1470

The declaration was refused as a matter of discretion because CrownBet had not established exceptional circumstances warranting a declaration about the lawfulness of proposed future conduct. The proposed declaration was framed generally and depended on obligations under the ILVA that were themselves conditional on compliance with the Unlawful Gambling Act, reducing its utility. The arrangement was a carefully considered commercial venture between well-resourced parties that had contractual mechanisms addressing possible unlawfulness or lack of regulatory approval. The industry was regulated and the regulator had been approached but did not provide guidance or appear as a disinterested...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
27 October 2017
Procedural Posture
Equity Commercial List Proceeding Seeking Declaratory Relief / Principal Judgment on Amended Summons
Outcome
Declaration refused; amended summons dismissed; costs reserved for argument.
Legal Topics
['declaratory Relief' 'unlawful Gambling Act 1998 (nsw)' 'proposed Bookmaker Advertising and Wagering Facility Arrangements' 'criminality of Proposed Future Conduct' 'court Discretion to Refuse Declarations']
['equity' 'gaming and Wagering Regulation' 'administrative and Regulatory Law'] ['declaratory Relief' 'unlawful Gambling Act 1998 (nsw)' 'proposed Bookmaker Advertising and Wagering Facility Arrangements' 'criminality of Proposed Future Conduct' 'court Discretion to Refuse Declarations']

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Procedural Posture

Equity Commercial List Proceeding Seeking Declaratory Relief / Principal Judgment on Amended Summons

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether the Court should declare that CrownBet's provision of Phase 1 equipment and related advertising services to Warners Bay Sports Club, the operation of the CrownBet Advertising Zone, and the Club's related obligations would not contravene ss 9, 11, 11A, 15 or 31-33 of the Unlawful Gambling Act 1998 (NSW)." 'Whether exceptional circumstances justified declaratory relief concerning the criminality or unlawfulness of proposed future conduct.' 'Whether the proposed declaration had sufficient utility and concreteness given the terms of the ILVA, the conditional nature of the obligations, the regulated industry context, possible factual uncertainty, and the limited scope of Phase 1.']

Ratio Decidendi

The declaration was refused as a matter of discretion because CrownBet had not established exceptional circumstances warranting a declaration about the lawfulness of proposed future conduct. The proposed declaration was framed generally and depended on obligations under the ILVA that were themselves conditional on compliance with the Unlawful Gambling Act, reducing its utility. The arrangement was a carefully considered commercial venture between well-resourced parties that had contractual mechanisms addressing possible unlawfulness or lack of regulatory approval. The industry was regulated and the regulator had been approached but did not provide guidance or appear as a disinterested...

Court Disposition

Declaration refused; amended summons dismissed; costs reserved for argument.

Orders

  • ['The amended summons should be dismissed.' 'The Court will hear argument as to costs.']