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Sweden's Supreme Court has made an interesting ruling in regards to poker. They ruled that while poker tournaments are a game of skill, cash games would be considered a game of chance since players have the ability to play the game whenever they like and leave the table at any time.
"The cash games constitute games that primarily depend on luck as in the meaning of chapter 16, article 14 of the Criminal Code, while the main tournament and the side tournament (sit and go) do not constitute games of luck." the court concluded in their findings.
The ruling comes after four men were convicted of violating Sweden's gambling laws back in 2007 when they organized a multi-million kronor poker tournament in Grebbestad. Two of the men were acquitted and the remaining two had their sentences reduced because the appeals court accepted arguments that poker tournaments were a game of skill and not chance; although the men did receive fines for the side games in which luck was considered to be a more predominant factor, they did manage to avoid jail time.
Many were hoping that the court would rule that poker itself was a game of skill since it would have opened the doors for betting companies to host poker tournaments within the country's borders. It doesn't look like that will be happening any time soon but at least the ruling was one step in the right direction.
As always, stay tuned to Casinofan for more news and updates.
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