You want to know if it is legal for restaurants and sports bars and clubs to hold Texas Hold'em tournaments and offer cash prizes to winners. If yes, you want us to answer related questions on licenses, prizes, and rules.

SUMMARY

“Texas hold'em” is a seven-card poker game in which players wager money against each other on the strength of their hands by placing bets in a common pot. The player with the strongest hand at the conclusion of play wins the pot. Hold'em is currently the most popular poker variant, according to industry sources.

Both the Division of Special Revenue (DSR) and the attorney general have indicated that the hosting of poker games or tournaments at commercial bars or similar establishments violates state law.

GAMBLING

State law defines poker as gambling (CGS § 53-278a). It is illegal to gamble, solicit, or induce others to gamble, or be present when others are gambling. A violation is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to $ 1,000, or both (CGS § 53-278b).

The law exempts people from prosecution and punishment for playing poker (and gambling generally), when such gambling is “incidental to a bona fide social relationship,” as long as no one, other than the participants, receives anything from the game. (This is commonly referred to as the social gambling exception. ) Also, the Mashantucket Pequots and the Mohegans may legally conduct poker games at the two tribal casinos. They may do this under agreements with the state that give them the exclusive right to conduct “commercial casino games” in exchange for a monetary payment to the state (25% of gross slot machine revenue from each tribe).

ATTORNEY GENERAL'S DETERMINATION

The attorney general, in 2004, determined that the practice of bars hosting poker tournaments violates the state's gambling law and may also constitute an unfair trade practice. In a letter to a bar owner that was hosting poking tournaments, the attorney general said:

My office has learned that your establishment has been promoting and hosting public “Poker Nights” and similar activities on its premises. Soliciting the public to engage in gambling at your place of business is expressly prohibited by Connecticut General Statutes § 53-278b and by § 30-6-A24(a) of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, and may be an unfair trade practice under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices (CUTPA). These statutes reflect the State's public policy that gambling should be closely regulated and restricted, indeed banned under many circumstances, to protect the public against abusive or improper activity (attorney general's letter, July 13, 2004).

In 2004, the Liquor Control Commission requested the attorney general's opinion on the “lawfulness of a proposed entertainment program at liquor premises involving the playing of poker for prizes. ” The attorney general responded that the

activity contemplated here involves the playing of a game of chance for gain under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53-278a(2), and the fact that random bar patrons from the general public will participate forecloses the social gambling exception in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53-278(a). . . the tournament violates several provisions of the Liquor Control Act or Regulations of the Division and should not be permitted (Attorney General's Opinion, December 17, 2004).

DSR DETERMINATION

In an undated letter, DSR responded to an inquiry about the legality of establishing a poker parlor for hosting poker tournaments. DSR cited the law prohibiting gambling and concluded that “poker is a prohibited form of gambling and soliciting others to partake in a form of prohibited gambling is also a violation of the State's criminal statutes. It also noted that:

the hosting of poker games would be a clear violation of the Memorandums of Understanding between the Mashantucket Pequots and the Mohegans and the State. Under these agreements the Tribes have the exclusive right to operate “commercial casino games” and the State receives 25% of slot revenue for allowing this exclusive right. Because poker is one of the commercial casino games listed in the Tribal agreements, the State would be in violation if it allowed anyone else in the State to engage in or solicit others to engage in poker (undated DSR letter).

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Attachments:

1. Attorney General's Opinion, December 17, 2004, to Liquor Control Commission

2. Attorney General's press release, July 13, 2004

3. Copy of the attorney general's letter to bars hosting poker nights

4. DSR press release, August 25, 2004

5. Copy of DSR response to a requestor on the legality of hosting poker tournaments