The MCK Files a Court Challenge Against iGaming
Written by Jeremy Zafran on 28 November 2022
In April 2022, iGaming Ontario, a subsidiary of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), launched iGaming allowing private third-party operators to offer online gaming to residents of Ontario. In response, The Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK) has filed a Notice of Application with the Ontario Superior Court challenging iGaming Ontario and the Attorney General of Ontario. The iGaming sites offer all forms of online gaming, including casino, poker and sports wagering. The private operators are registered with the AGCO and retain 80% of the gross profits generated by their sites. Ontario’s iGaming attempts to replicate the third-party licensing model on which Kahnawà:ke has built its business and it’s successes with online gaming, all on the strength of its inherent Indigenous jurisdiction. Mike Delisle is on the gaming portfolio on the MCK saying this is step 1:
“We are open to continued dialogue and what I mean by that, is real sustainable dialogue with people who can make change and look for the accommodations that we have been seeking for the better part of almost 4 years, short of that, the motion at the court, the Superior Court of Ontario, will proceed forward.”
Ontario’s iGaming scheme will undermine the industry that Kahnawà:ke has built over the past 25 years and will significantly damage Kahnawà:ke’s economy. The MCK has made numerous attempts to discuss Ontario’s iGaming scheme with Ontario officials and with Canada’s Justice Minister David Lametti. However, neither has been prepared to engage in meaningful discussions with the MCK to reconcile and accommodate Kahnawà:ke’s unique interests in the gaming industry:
“We’ve been involved for 25 years, we have our own law and gaming commission which is world renowned, signed MOU’s across this globe with other jurisdictions, the only place that it’s not recognized is here in our own backyard: the Province of Quebec and across Canada. I’m proud to say that we’ve been able to generate tens of millions of dollars in the online gaming as an operator and historically over the past 20 years plus. over $100 million dollars and countless jobs throughout the community to ensure that our jurisdiction is recognized.”
Ontario’s iGaming threatens to undermine Kahnàwake’s economy as it prevents all other gaming regulators, including Mohawk Online and gaming operators licensed by the KGC, from carrying out gaming activities in Ontario unless they are also registered with the AGCO.
