The Los Angeles City Attorney has sued Stake, Evolution, Pragmatic Play and a host of other suppliers over allegations of running an illegal online gambling enterprise in California.
The lawsuit, which was brought by LA City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto, names Stake co-founders Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani, as well as the pair’s Kick streaming site.
Hacksaw Gaming and several Evolution subsidiaries including NetEnt, Nolimit City, Red Tiger and Big Time Gaming were also listed as defendants.
The suit alleges that the defendants have run or aided and/or abetted in the running of an illegal online gambling enterprise.
The civil action case relates to alleged breaches of the California Unfair Competition Law (UCL), the California Business and Professions Code (BPC) and the False Advertising Law (FAL).
The complaint is seeking a permanent injunction, restitution and mandatory civil penalties.
Mandatory civil penalties of up to $2,500 (£1,855) per violation of the UCL and FAL are in place under California law. The case was first flagged by US gaming lawyer Daniel Wallach.
Feldstein Soto’s office has brought in private law firm Susman Godfrey LLP as co-counsel. The litigation firm recently filed a nationwide class action lawsuit against Australia-founded sweepstakes giant VGW.
Posting on LinkedIn, Wallach wrote: “This is a really shrewd move because California law generally bars private civil lawsuits to recover gambling losses, but governmental officials can sue on behalf of the people for injunctive relief, restitution and mandatory civil penalties of up to $2,500 per violation.
“If Susman Godfrey is doing some of the heavy lifting here, we may begin to see similar lawsuits from other city and county attorneys throughout California (with Susman Godfrey as co-counsel).”
Wallach said that Feldstein Soto was the first government official in the US to file civil enforcement action against an online sweepstakes casino operator. “The floodgates may be opening,” he added.
Stake operates its Stake.US sweepstakes platform in California, as well as in several other US states.
The firm was handed a cease-and-desist order in Arizona in June, while several other states have outlawed sweepstakes in 2025, including New Jersey, Louisiana and Montana.
In California, AB831, which is progressing through the legislature, would outlaw sweepstakes from operating in the Golden State.
However, the legislation is continuing to draw ire from sweepstakes casinos and tribal representatives due to its fast pace through the legislature.
There is a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the bill scheduled for today, 29 August.
EGR has contacted Stake and the other defendants in the case for comment.
Pragmatic Play declined to comment when approached.
The post Stake, Evolution and other suppliers sued by LA City Attorney over sweepstakes operations first appeared on EGR Intel.
Defendants accused by Hydee Feldstein Soto of running or abetting the running of an illegal online gambling enterprise in California
The post Stake, Evolution and other suppliers sued by LA City Attorney over sweepstakes operations first appeared on EGR Intel.