Florida Moves To Toss Newest Betting Lawsuit

Florida’s sports betting industry has been marred by lawsuit after lawsuit since it was first approved in 2021. The latest one is not new in that sense, but it is in how it’s approaching its case against the state.

But if Florida’s attorney general has its way, the suit will be dismissed. In June, state lawyers asked a Tallahassee circuit judge to dump the brand-new complaint filed by a group calling itself Protect the Constitution LLC. Their request, in layman’s terms, is this: the lawsuit has nothing the court needs to hear so kill it now and allow its popular mobile betting app, Hard Rock Bet, to operate worry-free.

Allow us to explain what’s going on because it’s A LOT.

“Sports Betting ≠ Casino Gambling,” Says Florida

Let’s backtrack here, what’s the issue? Well, Protect the Constitution claims the Seminoles tribe — which has an exclusive deal with the state to offer legal betting — is offering “casino gambling” on its app. If so, that would be a violation of Amendment 3, which requires voter approval for online-based casino gambling. That did not happen here as the Seminoles and its fully-owned Hard Rock app, entered the state with a compact, not vote.

Florida lawyers have countered, saying that casino games are roulette, blackjack, slots — stuff you’d find on a Vegas floor — not sports wagers, which is what Hard Rock Bet offers. Because sports betting sits outside that casino bucket, the state argues the legislature was free to bake it into the 2021 compact with the Seminole Tribe.

Other Issues Are At Play

Amendment 3 is the novel issue here. No other lawsuit has brought it up before. But as you can see, the debate is really over semantics and definition. Ultimately, a judge will decide whether legal sports betting counts as casino gambling or not.

But… it won’t be the only issue. We could go through all of them one by one, but instead, we want to list Florida’s counter to each argument against it. Here’s a bullet list of what state lawyers believe gives them the right to keep business as usual:

• IGRA Shield – The Florida-Seminoles compact was OK’d by the U.S. Department of the Interior under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. Amendment 3 says nothing in it can block a tribal compact executed under IGRA.
• Server Location Trick – All online sports bets run through computers on Seminole land. Florida’s lawyers say that means, from a legal standpoint, the wager happens on the reservation — even if the bettor is on Miami Beach.
• No Harm, No Standing – Protect the Constitution doesn’t own a track, card room, or sportsbook. The state calls them “random Floridians hiding behind an LLC” and says they can’t prove they’re hurt by Hard Rock Bet’s success.
• Missing Party – The Seminole Tribe hasn’t waived sovereign immunity so the group can’t drag them into court. The state argues you can’t torpedo the compact if the Tribe — the other signer — can’t be sued.

Any one of those angles could give the judge a quick off-ramp without touching the bigger constitutional question.

Why This Group Is Suing Anyway

Protect the Constitution popped up in April with a single mission: force a statewide vote before any more mobile wagers are allowed. Their argument is straightforward: the hub-and-spoke model that allows anyone to bet on sports by phone is a no-no. If allowed, it’s an obvious expansion of gambling outside tribal land.

In their filing, they paint the compact as a workaround cooked up by Gov. Ron DeSantis and legislative leaders to dodge the 2018 voter mandate. They want a judge to declare the deal void and slam the brakes on Hard Rock Bet until Floridians sign off at the ballot box.

Other plaintiffs have argued similar things since 2021. But here’s what makes Protect the Constitution different: they skipped federal court and IGRA arguments. They’re attacking the compact strictly under state law, betting that a Florida judge — and eventually the Florida Supreme Court — will see Amendment 3 as an absolute veto over any statewide gambling expansion, servers or no servers.

Quick History Lesson: How We Got Here

We’ve alluded to the industry’s constant issues in the courtroom. It’s seriously been a yearly occurrence. For those that missed it, here are the issues that predate this latest complaint:

• 2021 – DeSantis and the Seminoles ink a 30-year pact. It gives the Tribe exclusive rights to statewide online sports betting and promises the state at least $2.5 billion over the first five years.
• 2021-22 – Two pari-mutuel groups (West Flagler & Bonita-Fort Myers) sue in both state and federal courts, saying IGRA never envisioned a phone bet 200 miles from a casino.
• 2023 – A D.C. circuit panel sides with the Seminoles.
• June 2024 – The U.S. Supreme Court refuses to hear the appeal; Hard Rock Bet relaunches in December.
• Early 2025 – Florida’s Supreme Court kicks a separate state-level writ on a technicality.
• April 2025 – Enter Protect the Constitution with a fresh state complaint and a different procedural path — asking for a standard declaratory judgment instead of an extraordinary writ.

What Happens Next?

The circuit judge will first tackle Florida’s dismissal motion. If the case survives, expect months of briefs, a hearing, and — no matter who wins — an appeal straight to the Florida Supreme Court.

For bettors, nothing changes today: the Hard Rock app is live and functional. For lawyers, lobbyists, and would-be competitors, the fight is very much back on. And for the rest of us? Strap in cause this story is far from over.