Canada

Seminole-Backed Group Claims Fraud in Fla. Casino Initiative

Published

5 years ago

January 13, 2022

The Seminole Tribe of Florida has gone on the offensive in litigation over a Las Vegas Sands Corp.-backed ballot initiative aimed at opening the Sunshine State to additional casinos, accusing the sponsor of “brazenly violating” Florida election law in its efforts to gather needed voter signatures.

The battle in a Leon County circuit court started with Florida Voters in Charge, the political committee behind the proposal, claiming that parties acting on behalf of the Seminoles, who have held exclusive rights to offer certain casino gaming in the state, improperly interfered with its petitioning. But on Monday, the tribe-backed political committee Standing Up for Florida Inc. and its president, political consultant Pradeep “Rick” Asnani, filed a counter-claim accusing the plaintiffs of illegally paying petition gatherers on a per-signature basis, shredding certain petitions or forging information on incomplete petitions.

“The Constitution of Florida is under attack,” Standing Up for Florida cautioned, adding, “The counter-defendants’ illicit conduct is an attack on Florida’s election integrity.”

State law requires sponsors of citizen initiatives to gather valid signatures from at least 8% of the state electorate, or 891,000 registered voters, by Feb. 1 to qualify for the November 2022 general election ballot, but the Seminole-backed parties argue that the alleged violations render any signatures gathered by Florida Voters in Charge under such contracts to be null and void.

Standing Up for Florida, which said it has spent “exorbitant resources” to voice its opposition to the initiative and fight the allegedly fraudulent petition gathering, asserted that the per-signature payments are “flatly illegal” under a 2019 law that banned such payments.

It also cited affidavits from an employee and a former subcontractor of Grassfire LLC, a firm that coordinated some of the petition gathering, who testified that in addition to the allegedly illegal contracts, the company also illegally shredded and discarded some petitions that it thought would be rejected by state officials in order to reduce its submission fees, filled in omitted information, such as dates and addresses, and even forged state officials’ signatures.

The counter-claim names Florida Secretary of State Laurel M. Lee and Leon County Supervisor of Elections Mark S. Earley as third-party defendants in connection with its request for a declaratory judgment voiding the submitted signatures. Standing Up for Florida also named the officials in an accompanying emergency motion for a temporary injunction to stop them from counting the disputed petitions.

The ballot initiative, titled “Limited Authorization of Casino Gaming,” would authorize state officials to permit casino-style games, including blackjack, roulette and slot machines, at up to three new casinos, with the restriction that they be located at least 130 miles from existing tribal casinos.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. has poured nearly $50 million into Florida Voters in Charge, according to election finance records, and news reports have suggested that, based on the proposal’s geographic limitations, the global gaming giant is aiming to open a casino in Jacksonville, in the northeast corner of the state.

Florida Voters in Charge sued Standing Up for Florida, another Seminole-backed entity known as Let the Voters Decide LLC and several other parties on Dec. 1. In an amended complaint, it alleged that the defendants have engaged in increasingly aggressive efforts to harass and intimidate its signature collectors. The suit also accuses them of “paying off” these workers by either hiring them away to gather signatures for an unnecessary “sham” petition purportedly related to a new Seminoles gaming compact or simply paying them to stop working on the new casino initiative and, in some cases, leave the state during the process.

A Leon County circuit judge denied Standing Up for Florida’s motion to dismiss, in which it argued that it acted within the state’s open labor market to compete for these workers’ services. But she ordered the plaintiffs to submit contracts that the defendants pointed out were missing to support the interference claims.

In its filings Monday, Standing Up for Florida pointed out that Grassfire produced a redacted copy of its petition gatherer contract form, but publicly available copies of the form showed Grassfire had blocked out portions detailing “bonus” payments based on the number of signatures collected.

Standing Up for Florida acknowledged that elements of the arguments in its counter-claim were rejected when it previously raised them in a separate action it filed in Palm Beach County, where it is based. But the group said that it believes that court erred by finding that the 2019 law’s authorization for the state attorney general to seek injunctions for election fraud preempted private litigants, such as itself, from bringing election integrity actions. The law, it pointed out, said nothing about ending more than 100 years of private litigants bringing such cases in Florida.

With state elections officials allowed 60 days to verify submitted signatures, Dec. 30 marked an effective deadline to guarantee that signatures will be counted by the Feb. 1 deadline, so a ruling in favor of the Seminole parties’ claims would end the initiative’s chances for appearing on the November 2022 general election ballot.

According to the latest Department of Elections records, Florida Voters in Charge had obtained verification of about 426,000 signatures. On Tuesday, the Florida Supreme Court — as part of the usual elections process — tentatively scheduled oral arguments for March 8 on whether the proposed ballot question and title is clear and not misleading and satisfies a single-subject requirement.

Counsel for Standing Up for Florida and the other defendants declined on Tuesday to comment beyond their latest filings. Counsel for the Florida Voters in Charge and other plaintiffs did not respond to a request for comment.

Standing Up for Florida and the other defendants are represented by William N. Shepherd, Jeffrey M. Schacknow and Henry A. Moreno of Holland & Knight LLP.

Florida Voters in Charge and signature gathering companies The Human Connection and I & R Campaign Management Services are represented by James McKee, Benjamin J. Grossman and W. Bradley Russell of Foley & Lardner LLP.

Grassfire LLC is represented by Eduardo S. Lombard and Angela D. Miles of Radey Law Firm.

Alberta

Gaming Corps goes live with bet365 in Alberta on regulated market day one

Published

34 minutes ago

July 16, 2026

Wladimir P.

gaming-corps-goes-live-with-bet365-in-alberta-on-regulated-market-day-one

Deal expands bet365 casino rollout in Spain and Ontario, with 50+ Gaming Corps titles certified for Alberta from 13 July 2026.

Gaming Corps has launched with bet365 in Alberta on the first day of the province’s regulated iGaming market opening (13 July 2026), while also expanding its content footprint with the operator in Spain and Ontario.

The Sweden-based, publicly listed game developer said it is among the first wave of studios certified for Alberta, supporting bet365’s entry with more than 50 games available at launch. The day-one portfolio spans Slots, Table, Plinko, Mine Games and Instant Blitz.

Gaming Corps said the expanded partnership includes its football-themed titles, including Penalty Champion: Goals to Glory, plus the 3 Pigs series (3 Pigs of Olympus, 3 Pigs of Olympus 2: Rise of the DemiHog and 3 Pigs of the Caribbean).

The rollout also brings Gaming Corps’ new Low RTP Blackjack titles to bet365, which the supplier said are designed around 93.57% RTP and approximately 6% operator hold, with side-bet mechanics and flexible branding options.

Graham Greensmith, Chief Commercial Officer at Gaming Corps, said: “Extending our partnership with bet365 across Spain, Ontario and Alberta is a major moment for Gaming Corps, but Alberta is the real statement here. Going live with bet365 from day one reflects the work our teams have put into certification, onboarding and ensuring we can move quickly and confidently with major operator partners.

“As one of the earliest studios ready for Alberta, we’ll be bringing more than 50 titles to the province. That breadth matters, because it gives operators like bet365 a single partner across multiple verticals, with content designed to support acquisition, engagement and retention across different player segments. Spain and Ontario are also important regulated markets for us and expanding with a global operator of this scale highlights how far Gaming Corps has come in a short period of time.”

Richard Graham, Associate VP of Gaming at bet365 at said: “Gaming Corps has become a valuable content partner, combining recognisable game identities with formats that add variety across our casino offering. We are pleased to extend the partnership into Spain, Ontario and Alberta, with the Alberta launch particularly important as part of our day-one commitment to the market.

“Expanding the relationship across multiple territories in a relatively short period reflects the strength of the collaboration, as well as the Gaming Corps team’s clear product direction, commitment and continued development as a game vendor. We look forward to giving players access to a wide-ranging portfolio from the moment the market opens.”

The post Gaming Corps goes live with bet365 in Alberta on regulated market day one appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

AGCO

ThrillTech secures AGCO supplier licence for Ontario launch

Published

19 hours ago

July 15, 2026

Wladimir P.

thrilltech-secures-agco-supplier-licence-for-ontario-launch

ThrillTech has been awarded a Gaming-Related Supplier licence by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), clearing the company to launch in Ontario’s regulated market.

The licence allows ThrillTech to deploy its opt-in side bet jackpots technology with regulated online casino, sports betting and lottery operators across the province.

Benjamin Bradtke, Co-Founder of ThrillTech, said: “Securing our AGCO licence is a major step in our mission to transform how jackpots are delivered at scale across regulated markets. This latest certification is testament to our robust technology and trusted compliance frameworks, allowing us to continue our global growth trajectory. We are thrilled to bring our proven, compliant jackpot technology to Ontario, empowering locally licensed operators to uplift revenue without cannibalising existing spend.”

The company said its “ThrillPots” mechanics sit as an independent, player-funded side bet and do not alter the underlying game’s return-to-player mathematics.

ThrillTech said the Ontario approval enables its existing multinational partners that also operate in the province to launch its side bet jackpots locally, while it also holds talks with potential new operator partners. The company lists its regulated footprint as including the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands, Romania, Malta, Gibraltar, Brazil and Peru.

The post ThrillTech secures AGCO supplier licence for Ontario launch appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

AGCO

ThrillTech wins AGCO supplier licence to enter Ontario market

Published

19 hours ago

July 15, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

thrilltech-wins-agco-supplier-licence-to-enter-ontario-market

ThrillTech said it has been awarded a Gaming-Related Supplier licence by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), clearing the company to offer its side-bet jackpot technology to regulated online casino, sports betting, and lottery operators in Ontario.

Benjamin Bradtke, Co-Founder of ThrillTech, said: “Securing our AGCO licence is a major step in our mission to transform how jackpots are delivered at scale across regulated markets. This latest certification is testament to our robust technology and trusted compliance frameworks, allowing us to continue our global growth trajectory. We are thrilled to bring our proven, compliant jackpot technology to Ontario, empowering locally licensed operators to uplift revenue without cannibalising existing spend.”

The company said its ThrillPots product lets operators add player-funded, opt-in side-bet jackpots on top of existing games, without changing gameplay or the underlying return-to-player (RTP) calculations. ThrillTech positions the mechanic as a way to drive incremental engagement and revenue.

ThrillTech said the Ontario licence enables existing multinational partners that also operate in the province to roll out ThrillTech-powered jackpots locally, and added it is in discussions with potential new operator partners. The company listed other regulated jurisdictions it serves as the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands, Romania, Malta, Gibraltar, Brazil, and Peru.

The post ThrillTech wins AGCO supplier licence to enter Ontario market appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.