Israel Poker Tournament Petition Rejected by Court

The Israel Poker Association ran into even more trouble yesterday when the High Court of Justice rejected its petition against the police. However, the good news is the hearing did not result in the tournament being banned.

According to news site YNetNews.com, the judges ruled that if the IPA believes that there is nothing wrong with holding the tournament, then they should not have asked the police for permission. They also argued that it was not up to the court but up to legislative authority to determine whether the game was against the law or not. It then fined the IPA NIS 25,000 in trial costs.

The judges said, “The petitioners are basically asking the State or the court to provide them with a legal opinion and permit the tournament in advance, and we cannot accept that.”

The State Prosecutor’s Office adhered to its belief that organising poker games, taking part in them, or even just Texas hold’em itself is forbidden, and is an offense. Despite this, the annual tournament is still set to go ahead this weekend.

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