Judge Mary L Cooper of the US District Court in Trenton, New Jersey has named a date for the next court date to contest the UIGEA. The legislation is being challenged on constitutional grounds by the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMEGA).
New of the hearing, which has been scheduled for September 4, was greeted favorably by the iMEGA. Joe Brennan, Jr., the organization’s founder and a former AOL executive, told Gambling 911 that the legislation can still be enforced before the September 4 hearing. “But we feel confident that the judge will prevent that from happening," he said.
The reason behind the group’s decision to challenge the UIGEA was revealed by iMEGA president Edward Leyden to news publication Red Herring earlier in the week. Leyden said that his organization believes that the legislation infringes upon the First Amendment and Tenth Amendment rights of its members. “We also believe the government has exceeded its authority in its WTO dispute with Antigua and that too has harmed our clients,” Leyden said.

The outcome of the hearing will be interesting to say the least. One possible course of action is that after consideration of plaintiff iMEGA legal brief and the US Department of Justice’s response, the presiding judge may grant a restraining order on the enforcement of the UIGEA. Alternatively, the judge may order a second hearing during which time oral testimony will be given by both sides before a decision is reached.

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