Hofstra Law Review Volume 35 | Issue 3 Article 19 2007 Check, Raise, or Fold: Poker and the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act Michael A. Tselnik Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Tselnik, Michael A. (2007) "Check, Raise, or Fold: Poker and the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act," Hofstra Law Review: Vol. 35: Iss. 3, Article 19. Available at: http://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/hlr/vol35/iss3/19 This document is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hofstra Law Review by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Tselnik: Check, Raise, or Fold: Poker and the Unlawful Internet Gambling E NOTE CHECK, RAISE, OR FOLD: POKER AND THE UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING ENFORCEMENT ACT I. INTRODUCTION Gambling permeates throughout American society. One cannot watch television without stumbling upon a poker show,' listen to the radio without hearing the amount of today's lotto jackpot,2 or go on the Internet without encountering an advertisement for a gambling website. When one thinks of this country's history, the image of the frontier saloon with its raucous drinking and debauchery goes hand in hand with gambling, mainly poker. In nearly every state in the Union, to one extent or another, there exists some form of legalized gambling.3 With such an ever pervasive culture of gambling in this country, why is Internet gambling the bane that needs to be eradicated from modem society? The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 20064 ("Act" or "UIGEA") is only the most recent legislation passed by Congress in an attempt to curb the ongoing "problem" that is Internet gambling.5 Simply stated, the Act prevents those transactions that are deemed restricted from being settled through any financial institution, including banks and credit cards.