[toc]The US Supreme Court will consider whether to hear New Jersey’s sports betting case in about two weeks.
NJ sports betting and SCOTUS
New Jersey’s final shot at allowing legal sports betting — at least in the short term — is coming to a close.
According to the docket for the New Jersey case on sports betting, the Supreme Court will determine whether the appeal will be heard on Jan. 13. The announcement appears likely to come a few days later, on Jan. 17.
The quick backstory on NJ sports betting
This fall, the state asked the nation’s top court to consider its case on sports betting.
New Jersey passed a law attempting a partial repeal of its sports betting prohibition several years ago.
The NCAA, along with the major professional sports leagues in the US, have challenged the legality of that law under the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. So far, those groups have handed New Jersey a series of defeats in the courts.
The leagues recently filed with SCOTUS, saying the appeal is without merit.
Can New Jersey get an appeal, or win it?
The state of New Jersey has attempted to argue that PASPA usurps states’ rights as guaranteed in the US constitution. The lower courts — particularly the Third Circuit — have dismissed this argument to date.
The appeal being heard likely hinges on whether some of the Supreme Court justices agree that PASPA could be unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court hears a very small percentage of all cases appealed to it, with a high bar being set for the court to review lower court rulings.
But if the appeal is granted, it at least signals that four of the eight Supreme Court justices (at minimum) feel the issue is worth a review. And that means New Jersey has a fighting chance once again in its quest to offer sports betting.
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