A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit from four Oklahoma tribes—Cherokee Nation, Chickasaw Nation, Choctaw Nation, and Citizen Potawatomi Nation—regarding gaming agreements made between the state and the Comanche Nation and Otoe-Missouria Tribe. The judge ruled that the tribes failed to demonstrate direct harm from these agreements, which allowed new gaming options, including sports betting, and had different fee structures. The judge did not assess the legality of the agreements themselves.
The agreements took effect in mid-2020 after the U.S. Department of the Interior did not act within the required timeframe. The tribes had argued they violated federal law and posed competitive threats to their casinos, but the judge noted that any potential harm was speculative, relying on future events that had not occurred. The ruling granted the defendants’ request to dismiss the case and denied the tribes’ request for summary judgment.
