Canadian Province Settles Lawsuit With Compulsive Gambling Mom
In what may be the first publicly reported settlement of a lawsuit brought by a compulsive gambler against a casino, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLGC) has resolved the claim of a factory worker who allegedly went on a “fifty-two hour gaming binge” at a local casino only weeks after placing herself on a self-exclusion list. The amount of the settlement was not disclosed. OLGC, a government entity, owns and operates eight casinos and 15 other gaming facilities in Ontario.
According to her statement of claim, Lisa Dickert started gambling in 2000 and soon became well known at two OLGC casinos near her home. During 2000 and 2001, the mother of two minor children claimed she became “a full-blown serious gambling addict,” spending several hours at the casinos each day and eventually losing both her job and the majority of her assets.
In March 2002, Dickert went to an OLGC racetrack (supposedly because she was “embarrassed” to go to the casinos she regularly patronized) and signed an OLGC self-exclusion form and related documentation. Despite OLGC assurances that she would henceforth be excluded from all OLGC facilities, she was “welcomed back” to her local casinos four to six weeks later. After her gambling binge, she totaled her car in a single-vehicle accident on the way home.
In addition to her negligence claim based upon OLGC’s failure to exclude her from its casinos, Dickert also asserted that OLGC was negligent in failing to identify her as a problem gambler and in failing to provide adequate counseling services to assist her. Her alleged damages included lost income and assets (including the automobile) as well as “psychological and emotional” harm.
In press reports, Dickert’s attorney likened the OLGC to an irresponsible bartender, stating that “it’s like a drunk tossing his keys on the bar and the bartender pouring another drink and giving his keys back.” The comparison to common law dram shop liability has been made in compulsive gambling litigation in the United States, but no American court has yet endorsed it.
