Daily Fantasy Basketball Games Set to Return
The NBA season gets underway this evening and, with it, a flurry of fantasy basketball tournaments are poised to commence. Against this backdrop, this blog piece will examine one aspect of the evolving state and federal legal framework governing pay-to-play fantasy contests that offer prizes to winners. As discussed numeroustimes on this blog, the legality of fantasy sports contests that require an entry fee, and that pay out cash prizes, enjoys a favorable position with respect to federal law, but varies by state.
Along those lines, there is currently an exemption under federal law (specifically, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act ("UIGEA")) that permits certain pay-to-play fantasy sports games that adhere to the designated criteria. In addition, favorable guidance was recently handed down by the Department of Justice ("DOJ") regarding the scope of the Interstate Wire Act (the "Wire Act") and its possible application to
