Casino tycoon Wynn defeats U.S. lawsuit over Chinese agent claims

Casino tycoon Wynn defeats U.S. lawsuit over Chinese agent claims

Article brief provided by Reuters
  • Jacqueline Thomsen, Reuters
October 12, 2022 11:13 AM
  • Jacqueline Thomsen, Reuters
  • United States

Casino magnate Steve Wynn cannot be ordered to register with the U.S. Department of Justice as a foreign agent of China, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., said Wednesday.

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The Justice Department in May sued for a court order forcing Wynn, the former CEO of Wynn Casinos, to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). Officials alleged that Wynn lobbied then-U.S. President Donald Trump on China’s behalf in 2017. Wynn’s attorneys denied that he was ever an agent of the Chinese government.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said Wednesday that, because any relationship between Wynn and the Chinese government ended in 2017, the GOP donor cannot be required to register as an agent. The judge pointed to past precedent in D.C. federal court in making the ruling.