Everyone remotely connected with the gambling industry is familiar with the UIGEA and the effects that this legislation has had. Passed back in 2006, the law has yet to be enforced due to the ambiguity of what constitutes “unlawful” online gambling transactions. One organization has set out to overturn the law as being unconstitutional thus taking the battle out of the politicians hands and into the judicial area of government.

The Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA) represents the gambling industry in the suit as allowed by Judge Mary Cooper last March. While she dismissed many of the arguments iMEGA offered at that time, she did say that they had legal standing to bring suit on the matter.

The US Third Circuit Court of Appeals has notified iMEGA to prepare to give oral arguments in April. The defendants in the suit, the US Dept. of Justice and the Federal Reserve, have also been put on notice.

The main argument to the constitutionality of the law is that the wording is too vague to be properly enforced as well as that Congress cannot put the burden on financial institutions to determine whether individual gambling transactions are legal or not. What will most likely happen is that banks will simply block any and all gambling related transaction. That situation has already happened in the state of New Hampshire where credit card companies blocked legitimate lottery transactions.