Massachusetts Court Rejects DraftKings' Motion to Dismiss Class Action Suit

BOSTON, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Yesterday, a court in Boston released its decision denying DraftKings' Motion to Dismiss a class action filed by the Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) last December alleging that its $1,000 signup bonus was an unfair and deceptive marketing practice and constituted false advertising.

Mark Gottlieb, executive director of the Public Health Advocacy Institute at Northeastern University School of Law, which filed the action and represents the proposed class, said: "This decision will allow the case to proceed to the discovery phase, where we have the opportunity to depose those involved with the deceptive promotion and collect internal communications to gain insight into how it was developed and executed."

Richard Daynard, the Institute's president and Northeastern University distinguished Professor of Law added: "This bogus promotion, designed to lure customers into an addictive trap, required new users to risk large amounts of money and gamble hundreds of dollars – each and every day – to qualify for credits that could only be used for more gambling. We think this will be an easy case to prove."

Dr. Harry Levant, the Institute's director of gambling policy, said: "The very sort of gambling this promotion requires of new customers, including a $5,000 deposit and gambling $15,000 to $25,000 over a limited time, is not, by any definition, responsible play," Daynard added. "Instead, it's a recipe for addiction. Yet DraftKings hypocritically exhorts its customers to 'gamble responsibly' in every advertisement. I don't believe that's what DraftKings actually wants."

"Sports gambling carries enough risks without adding false advertising and deceptive promotions to dupe customers into signing up," Gottlieb added.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for December 10th of this year.

About The Public Health Advocacy Institute

The Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) is a non-profit legal research center focused on public health law located at Northeastern University School of Law. In 2014, PHAI formed the Center for Public Health Litigation, a nonprofit law firm, which uses the civil justice system to improve public health by focusing on litigation targeting tobacco industry products, unhealthy foods, deceptive health marketing, and deceptive gambling practices.

To learn more about PHAI, visit phai.org.

SOURCE Public Health Advocacy Institute