Dishonesty - Ivey V Genting Casino

Case Alert - [2017] UKSC 67

Supreme Court re-defines the test for criminal dishonesty

The claimant, a professional gambler, sued a casino for winnings which he had obtained by, broadly, persuading a croupier to rotate face-down cards, having deceived her that the request was innocuous (when in fact this greatly improved his chances of winning). Both the judge at first instance and the Court of Appeal found that he was not entitled to the winnings because he had cheated. The claimant was adamant that what he had done was "legitimate gamesmanship" (and the judge accepted that he was genuinely convinced that what he did was not cheating). The claimant appealed and the Supreme Court has now unanimously dismissed that appeal. In so doing, it has re-defined the criminal test for dishonesty.