The polarising Bill 55, often cited in disputes around the Maltese gambling framework and licensing, could be set to slip the net of legal examination.
Advocate General Nicholas Emiliou came to the conclusion that a preliminary ruling on the legitimacy of Bill 55 was inadmissible and not necessary for the conclusion of a case before the Austrian courts.
That being said, Emiliou accelerated a trend across Europe that will serve to intensify the pressure on Malta, as he remained unrelenting in his criticism of Bill 55, describing it as ‘manifestly incompatible with the rules governing the recognition and enforcement of judgments’ by Brussels.
Further increasing the pressure on a region commonly regarded as Europe’s gambling hub, he emphasised that rulings around player restriction against Maltese online gambling operators made in EU member states must be recognised not only in Malta and other EU states.
While the role of the Advocate General isn’t defining in this case, it mounts pressure on Malta and increases the momentum of the player reclaim cases in the other direction, although potentially providing a net for Bill 55 scrutiny to slip through.
Although not legally binding, the statement of the Advocate General serves as a thorough, independent recommendation for the judges to consider as they embark on their own deliberations.
Just last week, trepidation within Malta’s gambling sector was heightened as the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) backed the view that contracts between players residing in Germany and operators that aren’t licensed in the country are essentially void.
This inflamed the legal conflicts that are currently in the midst of resolution between Maltese operators and a myriad of countries.
In a preliminary ruling requested by the First Hall of the Civic Court in Malta, the EU court stated that players could be entitled to claim back losses from operators not licensed in the country. The European Court deemed that Article 56 TFEU – an EU law concerning restrictions on the provision of unrestricted services – does not supersede national laws related to online gambling disputes.
The cases threaten to usher in legal chaos across markets in global iGaming, as well as destabilising Malta’s status as the hub for iGaming in Europe due to its licence, providing operators with a means to operate internationally, whether in the EU or elsewhere, as well as its favourable 5% tax rate.
