Two Canadian Class Action Claims Progress
A trial date of February 2007 has been set in the class action brought against Loto-Quebec on behalf of Quebec’s supposedly compulsive gamblers. The plaintiff in Brochu v. Loto-Quebec, which was filed in May 2001, seeks more than $500 million in damages to compensate the province’s compulsive gamblers for treatment costs and loss of income.
The plaintiffs filed an expert witness report signed by Jean LeBlond (a psychologist), who claims that video lottery terminals (VLTs) are designed to addict gamblers by creating an “illusion of control.” LeBlond alleges that the provincial government, which operates the VLTs, issued misleading statements about the risks of pathological gambling and failed to issue proper warnings of those risks. Beyond those alleged risks, LeBlond also reported that dependence on VLTs fosters bad eating habits and fatigue.
Three equipment manufacturers now are parties to the lawsuit. Spielo, now owned by GTECH, intervened on its own, while IGT and WMS Gaming joined by motion of Loto-Quebec. The trial is projected to last six months or more.
In the Maritime Provinces, Walsh v. Atlantic Lottery Corp., a class action against Nova Scotia VLT operators, was filed in January of this year. The plaintiffs in Walsh claim that VLTs are addictive and even “inherently dangerous.”
In initial discovery responses, the plaintiffs recently offered several examples of VLT features that allegedly distort the probability of the games, including:
- “The physical layout of the machines”
- “The speed of game play”
- “Visual cues on the VLT screen which indicate a player is winning when in fact the gambler’s funds have diminished”
