Gambler Blames NJ Casino for Restoring Credit
In a series of six counterclaims filed in April, a New Jersey gambler accused The Borgata Resort and Casino of thwarting the state’s compulsive gambling policy by assisting him to reinstate his eligibility for credit. Marina District Development Co., L.L.C. v. Donald Carroll, No. ATL-L-1505-04(Atlantic County Super. Ct.). The gambler also denied any responsibility to repay the amounts the casino extended on his credit line.
According to his court filing, the gambler secured from the New Jersey Casino Control Commission “an indefinite suspension of his credit privileges.” While the plaintiff gambled at the The Borgata, a casino host there allegedly assured him of his “excellent credit,” and that by removing his name from the state’s voluntarily credit-privileges suspension list, “he would receive various goods and services on a complimentary basis.” Supposedly, the casino then provided a limousine to transport the gambler to and from the state office so he could reverse the credit suspension.
The gambler claims The Borgata thereafter granted him $3,000 in goods and services, plus a $150,000 credit, and that he gambled and lost “most or all of the monies” at The Borgata’s casino. The counterclaims assert that the casino acted unconscionably and, contrary to the public policy of New Jersey, breached the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing in the credit agreement, intentionally inflicting emotional distress on him.
The court case began when Borgata sued the gambler on the credit agreement and won a default judgment. The trial court vacated the default and allowed the gambler to file his counterclaims for compensatory and punitive damages.
