Stanleybet loses E.U. lawsuit

The legal team representing Stanley International Betting Ltd. lost a European Union lawsuit Thursday when the European Court of Justice ruled against the company in a dispute over the duration of Italian gambling licenses.

Business news publication Bloomberg reports that the court found that betting licenses offered by AAMS in 2012 that lasted for just 40 months were not unfair to companies competing with firms that had older permits that were valid for as long as 12 years.

In a judgment from Luxembourg, the court supported Italy’s contention that the shorter licensing periods helped align the expiry dates of all licenses.

The ruling is the culmination of years of licensing litigation by Stanleybet; previous rulings by the EU court forced Italy to reform its system and to open a new round for betting shop licenses by including companies such as Stanley International. The company appealed again when the licenses issued were of shorter duration.

“The reorganization of the licensing system through the alignment of license expiry dates may contribute to a coherent pursuit of the legitimate objectives of reducing gambling opportunities,” the court noted.

The case is: C-463/13, Stanley International Betting Ltd and Stanleybet Malta Ltd v. Ministero dell’Economia e delle Finanze and Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli di Stato.

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