State of New York seeking to have DraftKings and FanDuel make restitution to those who lost money

The New York lawsuit against DraftKings and FanDuel seems to have new developments not just every day, but almost by the minute. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman isn’t just seeking to have the daily fantasy sites declared illegal, but now he wants them to give back money to players.

An amended lawsuit has been filed by Schneiderman seeking to have DraftKings and FanDuel make restitution to players who have lost money, give back all money they made in New York or risk a $5,000 fine for each case.

Schneiderman is going after daily fantasy very hard. As the attorneys for DraftKings and FanDuel and the State of New York will argue in court on Monday, the New York AG is going after what he calls deceptive advertising practices saying deposit bonuses would only yield a small amount of money and would fully unlock only after players spent a certain amount of money on the sites.

Schneiderman says only a small amount of players made money and ads showing players with winning totals did not reflect their total losses.

For their part, DraftKings and FanDuel contend they’re not illegal because they don’t depend on bets nor does their success rely on one outcome. Their argument is that daily fantasy is a game of skill and not a game of chance.

And while the two sites are sharpening their arguments for New York, they will have to prepare for a legal challenge in Illinois as that state’s Attorney General, Lisa Madigan declared daily fantasy is illegal gambling and the businesses must leave the state.

The legal challenges are mounting for DraftKings and FanDuel and it could lead to some interesting rulings in 2016.

[ESPN.com]