Solidarity party in Brazil files lawsuit to ban municipal lotteries

The Solidarity party in Brazil has filed a lawsuit that requests for municipal lotteries in the country to be suspended.

The ‘Claim of Non-Compliance with a Fundamental Precept (ADPF)’ has been filed with the Federal Supreme Court.

The social-democratic party aims for the lotteries to be provisionally suspended, pending a final ruling by the court on whether they breach the country’s constitution.

According to iGaming Business, the party claims these municipal lotteries are creating a ‘truly chaotic scenario.’ Across the country, there are over 5,500 municipalities with some aiming to create their own laws around lotteries.

As well as a suspension, the case calls for regulations to be enforced with some regions named which asks for them to share more information on future plans.

A number of back-and-forths with lotteries and government bodies have taken place over the last few months now, with the Rio de Janeiro State Lottery (Loterj) having sued the federal government in October.

Previously, the Loterj has argued it should be permitted to license operators on a national basis rather than just within Rio de Janeiro state borders.

In February, the preliminary injunction that prohibited Loterj from fulfilling nationwide activities was voted to be upheld. It also mandates geolocation tracking on its licensees to ensure they are only active within the set area, rather than on a larger scale.

An area in Brazil, called Bodo, has also recently been in the media after it issued licenses to operators which cost just BRL5,000 (roughly $875). This is a significant difference from what the state charges for national licenses, as that sits at BRL30 million.

The small municipality has a population of just 2,363 and the town which is in Rio Grande do Norte is reported to have issued 38 online gambling licences.

The country has recently gone through a six-year process of legalization for sports betting, with a number of sports having been approved for fixed-odds betting in January. Gambling discussions have been ongoing for some time now.

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