Kansas Supreme Court: ‘Skill-gaming’ company lacks standing in lawsuit against state regulators

Thursday, January 2, 2025 3:18 PM
  • Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector

The Kansas Supreme Court deflected a legal squabble initiated five years ago by an electronic “skill-game” company that sought an official declaration that its Dragon’s Ascent game available to players at truck stops or convenience stores was legal under state law.

The state Supreme Court upheld a district court’s dismissal of claims by POM of Kansas, a subsidiary of game manufacturer Pace-O-Matic of Duluth, Georgia, in a lawsuit seeking declaratory judgment that the state’s casino law didn’t apply to the company’s arcade game.

In the original 2019 suit, POM of Kansas sought a court order that their unregulated Dragon’s Ascent game complied with the state statutes because it was a contest of “skill.” It was different, they argued, from slot machines in casinos because those were regulated games of “chance.”