New York appeals court suspends fantasy sports shutdown

A New York appeals court on Friday suspended an order that would have forced two fantasy sports websites to suspend operations in the state, a lawyer said.

The new ruling will allow the websites to continue operating until at least January 4 while the courts determine whether they are illegal gambling operations or games of skill.

DraftKings said it filed an immediate notice of appeal against the ruling from State Supreme Court Judge Manuel Mendez and an expedited motion to stay the court's decision to preserve the status quo.

"This immediate stay was granted so we will remain fully operational in New York," said its lawyer David Boies.

"We look forward to a full and fair hearing and are confident we will demonstrate clearly to the court why we should be able to continue to offer our DFS games in New York permanently."

FanDuel was not immediately reachable for comment.

The temporary ruling would have stopped them from accepting wages or bets from New York customers for any competition, game or contest run on their websites pending a final decision on the matter.

The office of state attorney general Eric Schneiderman is battling to shut down the websites on the grounds that they are in fact gambling operations illegal under state law.

Schneiderman issued an administrative cease-and-desist order on November 11 following an investigation by his office concluding the two websites are illegal gambling operations.

The two firms shut down operations in Nevada following a similar investigation.
Source: AFP