Higher NY court grants DraftKings, FanDuel stay

Messages seeking comment from Boston-based DraftKings and New York-based FanDuel were not immediately returned.

A New York Supreme Court Justice ruled on Friday to stop daily fantasy sports website operators DraftKings and FanDuel from doing business inside the state. But Mendez said they can not accept bets from New Yorkers until the case is concluded.

“We are disappointed with the court’s decision, and have filed a notice of appeal and an expedited motion to stay the Court’s decision, pending our appeal, in order to preserve the status quo”, DraftKings said in a statement.

The temporary stay of the day’s earlier ruling means the companies can continue to do business in the state until at least January 4, a DraftKings lawyer told Reuters.

Schneiderman has claimed that the sites offer illegal gambling as defined by New York’s definition of gambling, but the sites have said those who use the site couldn’t have broken the law because they didn’t make bets, they paid entry fees.

DraftKings and FanDuel argue their contests are highly competitive games of skill, not chance. Fan Duel and Draft Kings argue that they are not gambling sites because they receive entry fees and not wagers.

Both DraftKings and FanDuel plan to appeal the ruling, reports Reuters, and in a statement about the decision FanDuel wrote “New Yorkers have been able to legally play our games for more than six years, and today’s preliminary decision was wrong and we expect we will ultimately be successful”.

According to the Albany Times Union, if you try and visit the FanDuel site in NY, you will be greeted with a message that reads, “We’re sorry, but your location prohibits you from making deposits or playing on FanDuel”.

That decision, sought by Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, potentially choked off the sites’ largest market and threatened the future of companies that as recently as September boasted valuations of more than $1 billion.

Pretlow said Friday that lawmakers must await further court rulings before determining whether the Legislature could legalize daily fantasy sports by changing the penal code, or whether it would require a state constitutional amendment. “I have said from the beginning that my job is to enforce the law; and that is what happened today”.

The attorney general’s investigation began after a report surfaced that said employees of the websites were winning a lot of money betting at the rival’s website.