Showing posts with label Howard Dickstein. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Howard Dickstein. Show all posts
Sunday, November 8, 2015
Saturday, November 7, 2015
Questions For the Next PBMI General Council Meeting
I would like to thank commenters for raising important issues that need to be addressed at the next General Council meeting.
Here are some questions and issues that should be raised:
First off the meeting is being held on Veteran's Day. Robert has always disrepected Veterans as well as elders. This meeting should be canceled.
Where is Howard Dickstein's Contract? Why is he not on the list? Kilma said Howard was getting 5% of the casino revenue each month. Who approved that?
How many contacts did Sara Dutschke Setshwaelo really have? First she was hired as an individual, then through Karshmer and Associates, and now through Dentons US LLP.
We all know Sara Dutschke Setshwaelo was hired to help disenroll the Brittains. Why should the tribe pay for an attorney who hurts its own membership.
Who gets to approve Sara's contract? Her Aunt who happens to be BIA Pacific Regional Director Amy Dutschke?
Where is Karshmer's Contract? She was working for the tribe for how long? Since Karshmer is the one that reviewed the Constitution she should know attorney's contracts need General Council Approval and Secretary of the Interior Approval.
Anyone remember when Karshmer got term limits reversed?
Newsflash Kimberly Kluff no longer works for Foreman and Associates. She currently works for Morongo.
Robert is trying to even get retroactive approval for contracts that are no longer in operation.
What are these attorneys doing for the tribe? Obviously these attorneys are not representing the tribe, they are representing Robert. Why does Robert need so many attorneys?
How much are these attorneys getting paid?
Since these contracts pre-dated the Brittains being disenrolled shouldn't they be allowed to vote on them as well since they are affected parties?
Robert Smith's illegal Constitution cannot be amended at a General Council meeting. It's too late to go on the ballot for the General Election. It would have to be a General Election called specifically to amend the illegal Constitution.
Don't give the Executive Committee power to remove members and non-members without General Council approval. To do that would require a Constitutional amendment anyway to transfer that power. The Executive Committee should make their case for removal of each individual they are targeting to the General Council. Too often the Executive Committee has used their power to punish and hurt others they view as political opponents.
PBMI members should ask for a bonus for $30K especially since this will be the last year the Brittains are not on the rolls. If Robert asks where is the money going come from, tell him from the Tribal Gaming Authority which is authorized to expend from the gross revenues for per capita.
If he says there is no money tell him to get it from Pala Interactive, the avocado grove, lease monies, property investments, and other ventures unknown to the GeneralCouncil. Robert can also sell 50 of the tribes vehicles and sell the Jets. Who needs golf anyway. There's always Sage Capital. Dividends are high this year, sell some stock. Maybe the bonus should be $40K.
By the way, where did the minor trust funds go? Perhaps $50K is more appropriate.
Here are some questions and issues that should be raised:
First off the meeting is being held on Veteran's Day. Robert has always disrepected Veterans as well as elders. This meeting should be canceled.
Where is Howard Dickstein's Contract? Why is he not on the list? Kilma said Howard was getting 5% of the casino revenue each month. Who approved that?
How many contacts did Sara Dutschke Setshwaelo really have? First she was hired as an individual, then through Karshmer and Associates, and now through Dentons US LLP.
We all know Sara Dutschke Setshwaelo was hired to help disenroll the Brittains. Why should the tribe pay for an attorney who hurts its own membership.
Who gets to approve Sara's contract? Her Aunt who happens to be BIA Pacific Regional Director Amy Dutschke?
Where is Karshmer's Contract? She was working for the tribe for how long? Since Karshmer is the one that reviewed the Constitution she should know attorney's contracts need General Council Approval and Secretary of the Interior Approval.
Anyone remember when Karshmer got term limits reversed?
Newsflash Kimberly Kluff no longer works for Foreman and Associates. She currently works for Morongo.
Robert is trying to even get retroactive approval for contracts that are no longer in operation.
What are these attorneys doing for the tribe? Obviously these attorneys are not representing the tribe, they are representing Robert. Why does Robert need so many attorneys?
How much are these attorneys getting paid?
Since these contracts pre-dated the Brittains being disenrolled shouldn't they be allowed to vote on them as well since they are affected parties?
Robert Smith's illegal Constitution cannot be amended at a General Council meeting. It's too late to go on the ballot for the General Election. It would have to be a General Election called specifically to amend the illegal Constitution.
Don't give the Executive Committee power to remove members and non-members without General Council approval. To do that would require a Constitutional amendment anyway to transfer that power. The Executive Committee should make their case for removal of each individual they are targeting to the General Council. Too often the Executive Committee has used their power to punish and hurt others they view as political opponents.
PBMI members should ask for a bonus for $30K especially since this will be the last year the Brittains are not on the rolls. If Robert asks where is the money going come from, tell him from the Tribal Gaming Authority which is authorized to expend from the gross revenues for per capita.
If he says there is no money tell him to get it from Pala Interactive, the avocado grove, lease monies, property investments, and other ventures unknown to the GeneralCouncil. Robert can also sell 50 of the tribes vehicles and sell the Jets. Who needs golf anyway. There's always Sage Capital. Dividends are high this year, sell some stock. Maybe the bonus should be $40K.
By the way, where did the minor trust funds go? Perhaps $50K is more appropriate.
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Reading
I am reposting a link here to something I posted nearly 2 years ago. It contains many documents so I am not going to post it all here again. You can click the link and go read if you are wanting more information. I'll post few excerpts here as a preview.
LasCal, Robert Smith, Jerry Turk, Paula Lorenzo, Arlen Opper, and George Maloof
After the plans were revealed to develop a huge Las Vegas style casino at San Pablo there was a State wide backlash. This ultimately lead to the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians dropping the plans and instead they installed Class II Bingo Like slot machines. You may recall that earlier I wrote about the development funded by Pala to create a Video Lottery Terminal Slot Machine.
Turns out that in the early days Pala was an investor in the San Pablo Casino:
"At that time, the tribe of about 50 members teamed up with LasCal Development Corp. a
California-based development company owned by Jerry Turk. The partnership also includes the Maloof family, owners of the Palms, and California-based tribes the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians, and the Pala Band of Mission Indians. The Paiute Tribe also has retained Las Vegas-based Construction Consultants Inc."
#
From here we need to go back and revisit the lawsuit filed by RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein.
Here are some excerpts:
H. LASCAL.
Contemporaneous with the restructuring of the Tribe's investment in the Lytton Band's casino project, the Tribe invested in LASCAL Land Development, LLC ("LASCAL") an entity seeking to develop land in Nevada, belonging to the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe.
The members of LASCAL nearly mirrored those in CIGD and CIGM, including the Tribe (through RMG), the Pala Management Group, the Maloof family, Opper Development, LLC and Turk Paiute, L.P., an entity controlled by Turk, the Pala Band's business manager.
Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi also represented the Pala Band in the LASCAL transaction. Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi did not disclose to the Tribe their conflict of interest in simultaneously representing multiple parties in the transaction or explain the potential and adverse significance of this conflicted representation. They also never sought or obtained the Tribe's consent and waiver of any conflict of interest in connection with representing both tribal clients in LASCAL.
#
Is Pala receiving its share of the profits from the San Pablo Casino?
See this article:
San Pablo Casino Pits City v. City, Gambler v. Gambler By RICHARD BRENNEMAN
Excerpt:
Some of the supporters of the San Pablo proposal belong to the Maloof family of Sacramento and Las Vegas, owners of the Sacramento Kings NBA team and of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. The Maloofs reportedly raised $2 million for Schwarzenegger’s successful gubernatorial run, and it was Schwarzenegger who signed a pact with the Lytton Tribe to build the San Pablo casino.
The Maloofs are partners with three other entities that have signed on to manage the reincarnated Casino San Pablo, two casino operating tribes—the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians which owns and operates the Cache Creek Casino in Yolo County and the Pala Band of Mission Indians—and former Las Vegas casino owner Jerry Turk, who manages the Pala’s casino in San Diego County.
In exchange for running Casino San Pablo, the four managing partners will receive a quarter of the net profit. (emph added)
##
Again, these are just excerpts from my previous post LasCal, Robert Smith, Jerry Turk, Paula Lorenzo, Arlen Opper, and George Maloof. Go the post if you want more reading and to view the documents.
LasCal, Robert Smith, Jerry Turk, Paula Lorenzo, Arlen Opper, and George Maloof
After the plans were revealed to develop a huge Las Vegas style casino at San Pablo there was a State wide backlash. This ultimately lead to the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians dropping the plans and instead they installed Class II Bingo Like slot machines. You may recall that earlier I wrote about the development funded by Pala to create a Video Lottery Terminal Slot Machine.
Turns out that in the early days Pala was an investor in the San Pablo Casino:
"At that time, the tribe of about 50 members teamed up with LasCal Development Corp. a
California-based development company owned by Jerry Turk. The partnership also includes the Maloof family, owners of the Palms, and California-based tribes the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians, and the Pala Band of Mission Indians. The Paiute Tribe also has retained Las Vegas-based Construction Consultants Inc."
#
From here we need to go back and revisit the lawsuit filed by RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein.
Here are some excerpts:
H. LASCAL.
Contemporaneous with the restructuring of the Tribe's investment in the Lytton Band's casino project, the Tribe invested in LASCAL Land Development, LLC ("LASCAL") an entity seeking to develop land in Nevada, belonging to the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe.
The members of LASCAL nearly mirrored those in CIGD and CIGM, including the Tribe (through RMG), the Pala Management Group, the Maloof family, Opper Development, LLC and Turk Paiute, L.P., an entity controlled by Turk, the Pala Band's business manager.
Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi also represented the Pala Band in the LASCAL transaction. Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi did not disclose to the Tribe their conflict of interest in simultaneously representing multiple parties in the transaction or explain the potential and adverse significance of this conflicted representation. They also never sought or obtained the Tribe's consent and waiver of any conflict of interest in connection with representing both tribal clients in LASCAL.
#
Is Pala receiving its share of the profits from the San Pablo Casino?
See this article:
San Pablo Casino Pits City v. City, Gambler v. Gambler By RICHARD BRENNEMAN
Excerpt:
Some of the supporters of the San Pablo proposal belong to the Maloof family of Sacramento and Las Vegas, owners of the Sacramento Kings NBA team and of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. The Maloofs reportedly raised $2 million for Schwarzenegger’s successful gubernatorial run, and it was Schwarzenegger who signed a pact with the Lytton Tribe to build the San Pablo casino.
The Maloofs are partners with three other entities that have signed on to manage the reincarnated Casino San Pablo, two casino operating tribes—the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians which owns and operates the Cache Creek Casino in Yolo County and the Pala Band of Mission Indians—and former Las Vegas casino owner Jerry Turk, who manages the Pala’s casino in San Diego County.
In exchange for running Casino San Pablo, the four managing partners will receive a quarter of the net profit. (emph added)
##
Again, these are just excerpts from my previous post LasCal, Robert Smith, Jerry Turk, Paula Lorenzo, Arlen Opper, and George Maloof. Go the post if you want more reading and to view the documents.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Saturday, October 12, 2013
JESSICA TAVARES et al vs GENE WHITEHOUSE et al Case 2:13-cv-02101-TLN-CKD Filed 10/10/13
A lawsuit was filed on 10/10/13 titled:
Case 2:13-cv-02101-TLN-CKD Filed 10/10/13
Howard Dickstein is featured prominently in the lawsuit. As far as I know Howard Dickstein is still Pala's Attorney.
Here are some excerpts:
*
"Specifically, petitioners took issue with several decisions made by the 2011 Tribal Council, including its refusal to seek restitution of $25 million in tribal gaming revenues paid to the Tribe’s counsel, Howard Dickstein (“Dickstein”) under an illegal contract he wrote for his unjust enrichment and convinced the Tribal Council to sign, to the great detriment of the Tribe."
*
"Despite guarantees in federal law protecting petitioners from punishment for engaging in political speech, the 2011 Tribal Council summarily deemed petitioners’ speech “defamatory” under an ordinance that Dickstein drafted and urged the Tribal Council to adopt – an ordinance whose language echoes the infamous Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 (1 Stat. 596)."
*
"Without providing meaningful notice or opportunity for petitioners to be heard, the 2011 Tribal
Council summarily sentenced them to years of banishment from all tribal lands, stripped them of
all rights associated with membership (including the right to run for election to any tribal office),
and imposed severe sanctions upon them by curtailing hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial benefits to which all other tribal members are entitled."
*
"The 2011 Tribal Council inflicted this criminal-like punishment on petitioners so as to maintain complete and unquestioned control over the Tribe and its assets. Among other reasons, the 2011 Tribal Council members and Dickstein wanted to conceal their unauthorized transfer of tribal assets to a secret escrow account (“slush fund”) designed to benefit them personally at the Tribe’s expense. As petitioners would later learn, the 2011 Tribal Council and Dickstein diverted millions of dollars in tribal funds to this secret, irrevocable slush fund held by the San Francisco branch of U.S. Bank. Petitioners are informed and believe, and thereon allege, that the 2011 Tribal Council members can access this fund if they are ever ousted from office, disenrolled from the Tribe, removed from the Tribal Council, denied their per capita distributions of gaming revenues or sued by the Tribe for their malfeasance in office. In addition, the slush fund inures to the direct benefit of Dickstein and a former Tribal Administrator who is under indictment by the federal government for embezzling millions of dollars from the Tribe (and is now in private, closed arbitration proceedings to enforce his right to use slush fund monies to pay for his defense of the criminal embezzlement indictment against him). Although neither Dickstein nor the former Tribal Administrator is a member of the Tribe, they both have the express and unlimited authority to tap the slush fund."
*
"a. The Tribal Council did not deny that $25 million was paid to the Tribe’s attorney, Dickstein, as claimed by petitioners, but only asserted that the money also went to two other attorneys at his firm. (In fact, petitioners are informed and believe, and on that basis allege, that Dickstein kept the lion’s share of the $25 million for himself and paid only a small portion of it to other lawyers).
"b. The Tribal Council did not deny that the $25 million in legal fees paid to Dickstein’s firm were improperly based on a percentage of casino revenues distributed to the Tribe pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, as claimed by petitioners, but only asserted that the payments were made on the “tribal side” after “management fees” and repayment of “construction loans” were made."
*
"The 2011 Tribal Council acted contrary to the interests of the Tribe and outside the course and scope of their authority as tribal officers, not only by punishing petitioners for their exercise of protected rights, but also by converting and misappropriating millions of dollars in tribal revenues through the secret slush fund established for the personal benefit of themselves and Dickstein."
*
"Specifically, petitioners are informed and believe, and on that basis allege, that members of the 2011 Tribal Council established an account for tribal officeholders, certain employees and Dickstein, immediately funding that account with $7 million in tribal assets and authorizing an additional contribution of up to $8 million in tribal monies."
Read the full lawsuit:
JESSICA TAVARES, DOLLY SUEHEAD,
DONNA CAESAR and BARBARA
SUEHEAD, unlawfully banished members
of the United Auburn Indian Community,
Petitioners,
vs.
GENE WHITEHOUSE, CALVIN
MOMAN, BRENDA ADAMS, JOHN
WILLIAMS and DANNY REY, in their
official capacity as members of the Tribal
Council of the United Auburn Indian
Community
DONNA CAESAR and BARBARA
SUEHEAD, unlawfully banished members
of the United Auburn Indian Community,
Petitioners,
vs.
GENE WHITEHOUSE, CALVIN
MOMAN, BRENDA ADAMS, JOHN
WILLIAMS and DANNY REY, in their
official capacity as members of the Tribal
Council of the United Auburn Indian
Community
Case 2:13-cv-02101-TLN-CKD Filed 10/10/13
Howard Dickstein is featured prominently in the lawsuit. As far as I know Howard Dickstein is still Pala's Attorney.
Here are some excerpts:
*
"Specifically, petitioners took issue with several decisions made by the 2011 Tribal Council, including its refusal to seek restitution of $25 million in tribal gaming revenues paid to the Tribe’s counsel, Howard Dickstein (“Dickstein”) under an illegal contract he wrote for his unjust enrichment and convinced the Tribal Council to sign, to the great detriment of the Tribe."
*
"Despite guarantees in federal law protecting petitioners from punishment for engaging in political speech, the 2011 Tribal Council summarily deemed petitioners’ speech “defamatory” under an ordinance that Dickstein drafted and urged the Tribal Council to adopt – an ordinance whose language echoes the infamous Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 (1 Stat. 596)."
*
"Without providing meaningful notice or opportunity for petitioners to be heard, the 2011 Tribal
Council summarily sentenced them to years of banishment from all tribal lands, stripped them of
all rights associated with membership (including the right to run for election to any tribal office),
and imposed severe sanctions upon them by curtailing hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial benefits to which all other tribal members are entitled."
*
"The 2011 Tribal Council inflicted this criminal-like punishment on petitioners so as to maintain complete and unquestioned control over the Tribe and its assets. Among other reasons, the 2011 Tribal Council members and Dickstein wanted to conceal their unauthorized transfer of tribal assets to a secret escrow account (“slush fund”) designed to benefit them personally at the Tribe’s expense. As petitioners would later learn, the 2011 Tribal Council and Dickstein diverted millions of dollars in tribal funds to this secret, irrevocable slush fund held by the San Francisco branch of U.S. Bank. Petitioners are informed and believe, and thereon allege, that the 2011 Tribal Council members can access this fund if they are ever ousted from office, disenrolled from the Tribe, removed from the Tribal Council, denied their per capita distributions of gaming revenues or sued by the Tribe for their malfeasance in office. In addition, the slush fund inures to the direct benefit of Dickstein and a former Tribal Administrator who is under indictment by the federal government for embezzling millions of dollars from the Tribe (and is now in private, closed arbitration proceedings to enforce his right to use slush fund monies to pay for his defense of the criminal embezzlement indictment against him). Although neither Dickstein nor the former Tribal Administrator is a member of the Tribe, they both have the express and unlimited authority to tap the slush fund."
*
"a. The Tribal Council did not deny that $25 million was paid to the Tribe’s attorney, Dickstein, as claimed by petitioners, but only asserted that the money also went to two other attorneys at his firm. (In fact, petitioners are informed and believe, and on that basis allege, that Dickstein kept the lion’s share of the $25 million for himself and paid only a small portion of it to other lawyers).
"b. The Tribal Council did not deny that the $25 million in legal fees paid to Dickstein’s firm were improperly based on a percentage of casino revenues distributed to the Tribe pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, as claimed by petitioners, but only asserted that the payments were made on the “tribal side” after “management fees” and repayment of “construction loans” were made."
*
"The 2011 Tribal Council acted contrary to the interests of the Tribe and outside the course and scope of their authority as tribal officers, not only by punishing petitioners for their exercise of protected rights, but also by converting and misappropriating millions of dollars in tribal revenues through the secret slush fund established for the personal benefit of themselves and Dickstein."
*
"Specifically, petitioners are informed and believe, and on that basis allege, that members of the 2011 Tribal Council established an account for tribal officeholders, certain employees and Dickstein, immediately funding that account with $7 million in tribal assets and authorizing an additional contribution of up to $8 million in tribal monies."
Read the full lawsuit:
Friday, August 24, 2012
Corruption Exposed At California Indian Casino
This article appeared in the Fresno Bee on August 17th, 2012. The casino is the Thunder Valley Casino owned by the United Auburn Indian Casino. For those keeping tabs on this kind of stuff you may recall Howard Dickstein is an attorney for United Auburn.
The article is titled:
3 charged with defrauding California tribe of $18M By DON THOMPSON - Associated Press
Here are a couple of excerpts:
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Three men have been indicted on federal charges of defrauding a casino-operating Indian tribe of more than $18 million through a kickback scheme involving the tribal administrator, federal prosecutors said Friday.
##
They are charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and money laundering in indictments unsealed Friday. The indictment charges that they inflated bills related to a construction project that included new headquarters for the tribe.
Volen, the contractor, is alleged to have paid about $7.5 million in kickbacks to Hinz. Prosecutors say Hinz, the quality-control expert, then used part of his money to buy tribal administrator Baker a Lake Tahoe vacation home, a $54,000 in-ground pool, a $70,000 BMW and a trip to Hawaii, among other things.
In March, the Internal Revenue Service moved to seize 23 properties, including vacation homes in Lake Tahoe and Maui, as part of the investigation.
Read The Full Article Here
The article is titled:
3 charged with defrauding California tribe of $18M By DON THOMPSON - Associated Press
Here are a couple of excerpts:
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Three men have been indicted on federal charges of defrauding a casino-operating Indian tribe of more than $18 million through a kickback scheme involving the tribal administrator, federal prosecutors said Friday.
##
They are charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and money laundering in indictments unsealed Friday. The indictment charges that they inflated bills related to a construction project that included new headquarters for the tribe.
Volen, the contractor, is alleged to have paid about $7.5 million in kickbacks to Hinz. Prosecutors say Hinz, the quality-control expert, then used part of his money to buy tribal administrator Baker a Lake Tahoe vacation home, a $54,000 in-ground pool, a $70,000 BMW and a trip to Hawaii, among other things.
In March, the Internal Revenue Service moved to seize 23 properties, including vacation homes in Lake Tahoe and Maui, as part of the investigation.
Read The Full Article Here
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Complaint Made Against Howard Dickstein To The NIGC
Here is a complaint made against Howard Dickstein to the NIGC. Some interesting reading for any tribe that retains Howard Dickstein. Pala is one of them.
Complaint Against Howard Dickstein to the NIGC
Complaint Against Howard Dickstein to the NIGC
Thursday, June 21, 2012
LasCal, Robert Smith, Jerry Turk, Paula Lorenzo, Arlen Opper, and George Maloof
LasCal Land Development, LLC is a Nevada based LLC.
You can look up the information at the Nevada Secretary of State Business Search. Just search for LasCal.
Here is what the ownership of LasCal is listed as:
LasCal Land Development, L.L.C.
To anyone following this blog these should all be familiar names. Jerry Turk was a long time manager of the Pala Casino. George Maloof was at one time owner of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas and owns the Sacramento Kings. George Maloof is also a preferred shareholder in Wells Fargo Bank. Arlen Opper has been involved in Indian Gaming for years along with Howard Dickstein. Paula Lorenzo is the tribal Chairwoman of the The Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians.
The saga of LasCal goes back to the early 2000's when the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians sought to expand their Card Parlor in San Pablo into a Las Vegas style Casino with Class III gaming. This was made possible by a a last minute provision added to a Congressional Bill by George Miller "ordering the Secretary of the Interior to take the site of the Casino San Pablo cardclub into trust for the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians, to declare the land a reservation, and to backdate the trust status so that the land would be deemed to have been Indian land since before IGRA was passed.2 The later provision was intended to exempt the proposal for a Nevada-style casino from review of community impacts." (Source Class II gaming Machines In San Pablo)
After the plans were revealed to develop a huge Las Vegas style casino at San Pablo there was a State wide backlash. This ultimately lead to the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians dropping the plans and instead they installed Class II Bingo Like slot machines. You may recall that earlier I wrote about the development funded by Pala to create a Video Lottery Terminal Slot Machine.
Turns out that in the early days Pala was an investor in the San Pablo Casino:
"At that time, the tribe of about 50 members teamed up with LasCal Development Corp. a
California-based development company owned by Jerry Turk. The partnership also includes the Maloof family, owners of the Palms, and California-based tribes the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians, and the Pala Band of Mission Indians. The Paiute Tribe also has retained Las Vegas-based Construction Consultants Inc."
Source:
Tribe Taps American Nevada for Planned Development - Thursday, March 3, 2005 | 10:54 a.m. - Las Vegas Sun
From here we need to go back and revisit the lawsuit filed by RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein.
Here are some excerpts:
H. LASCAL.
Contemporaneous with the restructuring of the Tribe's investment in the Lytton Band's casino project, the Tribe invested in LASCAL Land Development, LLC ("LASCAL") an entity seeking to develop land in Nevada, belonging to the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe.
The members of LASCAL nearly mirrored those in CIGD and CIGM, including the Tribe (through RMG), the Pala Management Group, the Maloof family, Opper Development, LLC and Turk Paiute, L.P., an entity controlled by Turk, the Pala Band's business manager.
Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi also represented the Pala Band in the LASCAL transaction. Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi did not disclose to the Tribe their conflict of interest in simultaneously representing multiple parties in the transaction or explain the potential and adverse significance of this conflicted representation. They also never sought or obtained the Tribe's consent and waiver of any conflict of interest in connection with representing both tribal clients in LASCAL.
The LASCAL operating agreement contains provisions that economically benefit
Opper at the Tribe's expense. Opper Development, LLC was a 3% owner of LASCAL and the Tribe was a 45% owner. However, upon the repayment of each member's invested capital, Opper's ownership interest increased from 3% to 8.25% without any further investment of funds. Correspondingly, the Tribe's ownership interest in LASCAL decreased from 45% to 33.75%.
In or about January 2004, at the request of Dickstein and/or Opper, then-
Chairperson Lorenzo signed the LASCAL operating agreement. Opper never sought or obtained the Tribal Council's approval of his ownership interest in LASCAL, through Opper Development, LLC. Further, neither Dickstein nor Opper disclosed to the Tribal Council that the LASCAL agreement's structure contained a "carried interest" in which Opper's ownership increased at the expense of the two Tribal investors (the Tribe and the Pala Band), whose interests would correspondingly decrease. Dickstein and Opper knew, or should have known, that the Tribal Council never authorized the terms of the investment. Thereafter, Opper did obtain a 3% ownership interest in LASCAL.
Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi, failed to faithfully and zealously
represent the Tribe's interests in negotiating the LASCAL operating agreement. Dickstein,
Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi failed to advise the Tribe about the Tribe's rights, the nature and extent of Opper's ownership interest in LASCAL, and Opper's fiduciary duties and
responsibilities to the Tribe.
The Tribe first discovered some of the acts, injuries and damages described above
after the Tribe retained Kroll. The Tribe discovered the balance of the acts, injuries and
damages described above after Dickstein's and Opper's termination and the Tribe secured its records from them.
##
Notwithstanding his position as General Counsel and attendant duties, Dickstein claims it was not his role to review the agreements for the Tribe's various investments. He takes this position even though he was involved in the negotiations for some of the investments, the original executed agreements were located in his files, and the agreements frequently listed him as the Tribe's legal and/or primary contact. As important, he never told the Tribal Council that he was not reviewing the agreements, and the Tribal Council understood otherwise. Dickstein also provided no advice or warning to the Tribal Council about Opper's receipt of undisclosed compensation from the various investments and the conflicts, of interest that arose therefrom, not to mention the existence of other investment terms that disproportionately favored the investment's promoters.
Nor did Dickstein inform the Tribal Council about his own conflicts of interest in connection with the investments. For example, when Rumsey invested in the Lytton Band's casino in San Pablo, Dickstein did not explain to the Tribal Council the implications of his representing multiple clients in the same transaction. He previously had held himself out as Lytton's General Counsel, and in this deal, along with Rumsey, he represented another of bill Rumsey's co-investors—the Pala Band of Mission Indians. He also omitted that he stood to gain $1 million annually in "pre-approved fee arrangements" under the terms of the management agreement for the venture. (The management agreement also gave Opper $500,000 annually.)
Full Lawsuit here:
Rumsey Band Rancheria vs Howard Dickstein
The Lytton Band of Pomo Indians continues to operate their casino with Class II slot machines and has been wildly successful.
Casino finds a wild card in knockoff slots
Article Exercpt:
"Scaled back from a planned high-rise mega-casino, the Lytton band's modest San Pablo Lytton Casino is on a pace to gross more than $100 million in its first year solely with gaming devices – strikingly similar to slots – that do not require state approval.
The knockoff slots – slower, bingo-based machines – are netting more than $330 a day each, an eye-popping figure that is double the take for slots on the Las Vegas strip and more than slots earn at some of the state's bigger Indian casinos."
Another article:
SAN PABLO Video bingo machines are tribe's new gamble Devices no different from slots, say critics of East Bay casino
#
Casino San Pablo spokesman Doug Elmets disagreed, calling electronic bingo and slot machines "inherently different."
Unlike with slot machines, video bingo players play against each other and not the house, though the house takes a cut, he said. The bingo machines also "operate more slowly and generate substantially less revenue" than slot machines, he said.
The Lytton tribe initially had proposed building a six- to eight-story casino with as many as 5,000 slot machines on the site of its cardroom near Interstate 80, which was essentially turned into a reservation under congressional legislation authored by Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez.
While the tribe later sliced the proposed number of slots in half, it could not rally enough support in the state Legislature to approve its compact with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Under the deal, the tribe would have paid $25 million and 25 percent of its annual profits -- estimated at $155 million a year -- to state and local governments to mitigate impacts.
But the tribe does not need a compact to operate so-called Class II gaming, including bingo and card games such as poker. There are no limits on the number of machines, and the tribe will not be required to pay the state, although it already makes payments to the city of San Pablo.
Elmets said the tribe has spent several million dollars renovating its 71, 000-square-foot cardroom and could double the number of video bingo machines depending on customer demand.
The video machines will cost between 1 cent and $5 to play, and progressive jackpots will start at $50,000 with no upper limits. The machinehas a 15-inch touch-screen with a graphic representation of a bingo card. Instead of coins, it pays out with paper slips that can be redeemed, Elmets said.
But a novice looking at a picture of a "Video Reel Touch Bingo" machine on the Web site of manufacturer IGT, Casino San Pablo's supplier, could easily mistake it for a slot machine.
You may recall that Anchor Gaming originally had the contract to develop the Pala Casino but was later bought out by IGT.
So what is this all about? I don't know, you tell me. Is Pala an investor in the San Pablo casino or not? Robert Smith as listed as a Manager for LasCal. Is he representing Pala on that board or is this a personal investment?
Are the Class II machines being operated at San Pablo based on the VLT machines which Pala funded the development of? If so, who is earning royalties on that patent from those machines? We know the inventors are listed as Robert Luciano (Sierra Design Group), Art Bunce, Glenn Feldman, George Foreman, Jerome Levine, and on the last page Howard Dickstein was also added as an inventor.
Class II unlike Class is not regulated by the NIGC. There are no limits on these machines. California is frustrated by these machines as they feel they are just slot machines but you may recall from the development of the VLT machine that the inventors used California's ban on Class III slot machines as a blue print for developing the Class II bingo-like slot machine.
Here is some more background on San Pablo and Class II gaming:
Class II Gaming Machines In San Pablo
Update: Is Pala receiving its share of the profits from the San Pablo Casino?
See this article:
San Pablo Casino Pits City v. City, Gambler v. Gambler By RICHARD BRENNEMAN
Excerpt:
Some of the supporters of the San Pablo proposal belong to the Maloof family of Sacramento and Las Vegas, owners of the Sacramento Kings NBA team and of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. The Maloofs reportedly raised $2 million for Schwarzenegger’s successful gubernatorial run, and it was Schwarzenegger who signed a pact with the Lytton Tribe to build the San Pablo casino.
The Maloofs are partners with three other entities that have signed on to manage the reincarnated Casino San Pablo, two casino operating tribes—the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians which owns and operates the Cache Creek Casino in Yolo County and the Pala Band of Mission Indians—and former Las Vegas casino owner Jerry Turk, who manages the Pala’s casino in San Diego County.
In exchange for running Casino San Pablo, the four managing partners will receive a quarter of the net profit. (emph added)
You can look up the information at the Nevada Secretary of State Business Search. Just search for LasCal.
Here is what the ownership of LasCal is listed as:
LasCal Land Development, L.L.C.
To anyone following this blog these should all be familiar names. Jerry Turk was a long time manager of the Pala Casino. George Maloof was at one time owner of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas and owns the Sacramento Kings. George Maloof is also a preferred shareholder in Wells Fargo Bank. Arlen Opper has been involved in Indian Gaming for years along with Howard Dickstein. Paula Lorenzo is the tribal Chairwoman of the The Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians.
The saga of LasCal goes back to the early 2000's when the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians sought to expand their Card Parlor in San Pablo into a Las Vegas style Casino with Class III gaming. This was made possible by a a last minute provision added to a Congressional Bill by George Miller "ordering the Secretary of the Interior to take the site of the Casino San Pablo cardclub into trust for the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians, to declare the land a reservation, and to backdate the trust status so that the land would be deemed to have been Indian land since before IGRA was passed.2 The later provision was intended to exempt the proposal for a Nevada-style casino from review of community impacts." (Source Class II gaming Machines In San Pablo)
After the plans were revealed to develop a huge Las Vegas style casino at San Pablo there was a State wide backlash. This ultimately lead to the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians dropping the plans and instead they installed Class II Bingo Like slot machines. You may recall that earlier I wrote about the development funded by Pala to create a Video Lottery Terminal Slot Machine.
Turns out that in the early days Pala was an investor in the San Pablo Casino:
"At that time, the tribe of about 50 members teamed up with LasCal Development Corp. a
California-based development company owned by Jerry Turk. The partnership also includes the Maloof family, owners of the Palms, and California-based tribes the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians, and the Pala Band of Mission Indians. The Paiute Tribe also has retained Las Vegas-based Construction Consultants Inc."
Source:
Tribe Taps American Nevada for Planned Development - Thursday, March 3, 2005 | 10:54 a.m. - Las Vegas Sun
From here we need to go back and revisit the lawsuit filed by RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein.
Here are some excerpts:
H. LASCAL.
Contemporaneous with the restructuring of the Tribe's investment in the Lytton Band's casino project, the Tribe invested in LASCAL Land Development, LLC ("LASCAL") an entity seeking to develop land in Nevada, belonging to the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe.
The members of LASCAL nearly mirrored those in CIGD and CIGM, including the Tribe (through RMG), the Pala Management Group, the Maloof family, Opper Development, LLC and Turk Paiute, L.P., an entity controlled by Turk, the Pala Band's business manager.
Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi also represented the Pala Band in the LASCAL transaction. Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi did not disclose to the Tribe their conflict of interest in simultaneously representing multiple parties in the transaction or explain the potential and adverse significance of this conflicted representation. They also never sought or obtained the Tribe's consent and waiver of any conflict of interest in connection with representing both tribal clients in LASCAL.
The LASCAL operating agreement contains provisions that economically benefit
Opper at the Tribe's expense. Opper Development, LLC was a 3% owner of LASCAL and the Tribe was a 45% owner. However, upon the repayment of each member's invested capital, Opper's ownership interest increased from 3% to 8.25% without any further investment of funds. Correspondingly, the Tribe's ownership interest in LASCAL decreased from 45% to 33.75%.
In or about January 2004, at the request of Dickstein and/or Opper, then-
Chairperson Lorenzo signed the LASCAL operating agreement. Opper never sought or obtained the Tribal Council's approval of his ownership interest in LASCAL, through Opper Development, LLC. Further, neither Dickstein nor Opper disclosed to the Tribal Council that the LASCAL agreement's structure contained a "carried interest" in which Opper's ownership increased at the expense of the two Tribal investors (the Tribe and the Pala Band), whose interests would correspondingly decrease. Dickstein and Opper knew, or should have known, that the Tribal Council never authorized the terms of the investment. Thereafter, Opper did obtain a 3% ownership interest in LASCAL.
Dickstein, Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi, failed to faithfully and zealously
represent the Tribe's interests in negotiating the LASCAL operating agreement. Dickstein,
Zerbi and Dickstein & Zerbi failed to advise the Tribe about the Tribe's rights, the nature and extent of Opper's ownership interest in LASCAL, and Opper's fiduciary duties and
responsibilities to the Tribe.
The Tribe first discovered some of the acts, injuries and damages described above
after the Tribe retained Kroll. The Tribe discovered the balance of the acts, injuries and
damages described above after Dickstein's and Opper's termination and the Tribe secured its records from them.
##
Notwithstanding his position as General Counsel and attendant duties, Dickstein claims it was not his role to review the agreements for the Tribe's various investments. He takes this position even though he was involved in the negotiations for some of the investments, the original executed agreements were located in his files, and the agreements frequently listed him as the Tribe's legal and/or primary contact. As important, he never told the Tribal Council that he was not reviewing the agreements, and the Tribal Council understood otherwise. Dickstein also provided no advice or warning to the Tribal Council about Opper's receipt of undisclosed compensation from the various investments and the conflicts, of interest that arose therefrom, not to mention the existence of other investment terms that disproportionately favored the investment's promoters.
Nor did Dickstein inform the Tribal Council about his own conflicts of interest in connection with the investments. For example, when Rumsey invested in the Lytton Band's casino in San Pablo, Dickstein did not explain to the Tribal Council the implications of his representing multiple clients in the same transaction. He previously had held himself out as Lytton's General Counsel, and in this deal, along with Rumsey, he represented another of bill Rumsey's co-investors—the Pala Band of Mission Indians. He also omitted that he stood to gain $1 million annually in "pre-approved fee arrangements" under the terms of the management agreement for the venture. (The management agreement also gave Opper $500,000 annually.)
Full Lawsuit here:
Rumsey Band Rancheria vs Howard Dickstein
The Lytton Band of Pomo Indians continues to operate their casino with Class II slot machines and has been wildly successful.
Casino finds a wild card in knockoff slots
Article Exercpt:
"Scaled back from a planned high-rise mega-casino, the Lytton band's modest San Pablo Lytton Casino is on a pace to gross more than $100 million in its first year solely with gaming devices – strikingly similar to slots – that do not require state approval.
The knockoff slots – slower, bingo-based machines – are netting more than $330 a day each, an eye-popping figure that is double the take for slots on the Las Vegas strip and more than slots earn at some of the state's bigger Indian casinos."
Another article:
SAN PABLO Video bingo machines are tribe's new gamble Devices no different from slots, say critics of East Bay casino
#
Casino San Pablo spokesman Doug Elmets disagreed, calling electronic bingo and slot machines "inherently different."
Unlike with slot machines, video bingo players play against each other and not the house, though the house takes a cut, he said. The bingo machines also "operate more slowly and generate substantially less revenue" than slot machines, he said.
The Lytton tribe initially had proposed building a six- to eight-story casino with as many as 5,000 slot machines on the site of its cardroom near Interstate 80, which was essentially turned into a reservation under congressional legislation authored by Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez.
While the tribe later sliced the proposed number of slots in half, it could not rally enough support in the state Legislature to approve its compact with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Under the deal, the tribe would have paid $25 million and 25 percent of its annual profits -- estimated at $155 million a year -- to state and local governments to mitigate impacts.
But the tribe does not need a compact to operate so-called Class II gaming, including bingo and card games such as poker. There are no limits on the number of machines, and the tribe will not be required to pay the state, although it already makes payments to the city of San Pablo.
Elmets said the tribe has spent several million dollars renovating its 71, 000-square-foot cardroom and could double the number of video bingo machines depending on customer demand.
The video machines will cost between 1 cent and $5 to play, and progressive jackpots will start at $50,000 with no upper limits. The machinehas a 15-inch touch-screen with a graphic representation of a bingo card. Instead of coins, it pays out with paper slips that can be redeemed, Elmets said.
But a novice looking at a picture of a "Video Reel Touch Bingo" machine on the Web site of manufacturer IGT, Casino San Pablo's supplier, could easily mistake it for a slot machine.
You may recall that Anchor Gaming originally had the contract to develop the Pala Casino but was later bought out by IGT.
So what is this all about? I don't know, you tell me. Is Pala an investor in the San Pablo casino or not? Robert Smith as listed as a Manager for LasCal. Is he representing Pala on that board or is this a personal investment?
Are the Class II machines being operated at San Pablo based on the VLT machines which Pala funded the development of? If so, who is earning royalties on that patent from those machines? We know the inventors are listed as Robert Luciano (Sierra Design Group), Art Bunce, Glenn Feldman, George Foreman, Jerome Levine, and on the last page Howard Dickstein was also added as an inventor.
Class II unlike Class is not regulated by the NIGC. There are no limits on these machines. California is frustrated by these machines as they feel they are just slot machines but you may recall from the development of the VLT machine that the inventors used California's ban on Class III slot machines as a blue print for developing the Class II bingo-like slot machine.
Here is some more background on San Pablo and Class II gaming:
Class II Gaming Machines In San Pablo
Update: Is Pala receiving its share of the profits from the San Pablo Casino?
See this article:
San Pablo Casino Pits City v. City, Gambler v. Gambler By RICHARD BRENNEMAN
Excerpt:
Some of the supporters of the San Pablo proposal belong to the Maloof family of Sacramento and Las Vegas, owners of the Sacramento Kings NBA team and of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. The Maloofs reportedly raised $2 million for Schwarzenegger’s successful gubernatorial run, and it was Schwarzenegger who signed a pact with the Lytton Tribe to build the San Pablo casino.
The Maloofs are partners with three other entities that have signed on to manage the reincarnated Casino San Pablo, two casino operating tribes—the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians which owns and operates the Cache Creek Casino in Yolo County and the Pala Band of Mission Indians—and former Las Vegas casino owner Jerry Turk, who manages the Pala’s casino in San Diego County.
In exchange for running Casino San Pablo, the four managing partners will receive a quarter of the net profit. (emph added)
Friday, June 15, 2012
Gaming Patents and Pala
Today's post is on the gaming patents behind slot machines. Understanding patents can get pretty complicated particularly if one if not familiar with the intricate details of the invention.
First, a little Patent 101. Let's say you invent something. You would then like to sell that product or service you have invented. But before one starts selling their invention they typically like to get some legal protection in the form of a patent. The inventor then would draft their patent and submit it to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for consideration.
Often there are multiple inventors and Patent Attorneys need to be hired to do an exhaustive patent search to make sure the invention doesn't already exist. More often than not an idea you may think is unique is already patented.
Usually the patent office rejects the first patent submission. The inventors then decide if they are going to revise the patent and resubmit or abandon the project. All this can cost a lot of money. Usually the minimum amount a patent will cost is about $7000 to $10,000. This is a rare case where the inventor can write the patent themselves, submit it themselves, do the patent search themselves, and address any concerns raised by the patent office themselves.
Patent costs can soar if a similar invention is found and legal challenges are mounted against the patent. Every reiteration and resubmission a patent goes through costs more money.
But if the inventors make it through this process then they are the proud owners of a U.S. Patent. It doesn't stop there though. If one plans to sell their product or service internationally one may decide to pursue patenting their invention in other countries such as in Japan or the European Union.
After all that the owners of the patent can do several things. First, then can produce and market their product on their own. Or they can sell the patent to another company. Or, more often than not, they can license their patent to another company or multiple companies who then use the patented technology to produce products and sell them. The owners of the patent are often paid Royalties and/or Licensing Fees for the right to use their intellectual property (IP).
Further, a patent can be licensed and sub-licensed multiple times. Even more complicated, if a company gets bought out that has a license to the technology then the company that bought the other company will assume ownership of that license.
Ok, for this discussion we also need a little background on Indian Gaming. A good primer on Indian Gaming is on Wiki about Native American Gaming. In a nut shell in the 1970's a couple of tribal members living on Indian Land in Minnesota received a property tax bill. Feeling they did not owe the property tax since they were on Indian Land they challenged the State and County in court. They lost. They appealed that decision to the Supreme Court which not only reviewed the case but made a ruling that " not only that states do not have authority to tax Indians on Indian reservations, but that they also lack the authority to regulate Indian activities by Indians on Indian reservations. (from Wiki)"
This paved the way for tribal gaming under the premise of tribal sovereignty. In 1980 the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians in California began operating a Bingo Hall. The Indio Police and Riverside County Sheriff promptly shut down the Bingo Hall. Cabazon took their case to the Supreme Court in 1986. The Supreme Court once again "ruled that Indian gaming was to be regulated exclusively by Congress and the federal government, not state government; with tribal sovereignty upheld, the benefits of gaming became available to many tribes. (from Wiki)"
Indian Gaming was born but complications still arose.
One complication was in California where Class III gaming was still illegal (traditional slot machines, craps, roulette, etc). California did have a State Lottery, Horse Race Tracks, and Poker Parlors but Class III gaming was still illegal.
Seeking ways to increase revenue tribes began looking at slot-like machines called Video Lottery Terminals. Since Bingo was already legal they sought slot machines that used a Bingo Mechanism instead of the Random Number Generators most Class III slot machines have. This lead to the creation of Class II Slot-like machines.
In the early days of Indian Gaming I remember people complaining about the machines. They didn't like the printed ticket. They wanted to feel the coins and hear the coins hit the tray. In the late 1990's this lead to a push at least in California to make Class III gaming legal on Indian Reservations. This lead to several tribes pursuing compacts with the State and ultimately lead to several ballot initiatives making Indian Gaming legal in California.
But while tribes could now operate Class III slot machines they were limited to 2000 machines per casino, had to pay the state a fee per machine, and still could not operate other games such as craps or roulette.
This lead to another round of inventions and patents that lead to the creation of crap-like and roulett-like games. I know Pala and Pechange both have "Pala Craps" and roulette and "Pechanga Craps" and roulette. Instead of rolling dice, cards are dealt that have pictures of dice. In the case of roulette instead of a ball landing on a number the wheel a card is drawn from a spinning wheel with a number on it.
Those of you who remember the early days of Indian Gaming may also remember playing Black Jack where an ante or "fee" had to be paid to the House. This was because at that time Black Jack had to be player banked and not house banked. The house could not make money on the loses of players.
The first document I have here is an article that appeared in the Los Angeles Times in 1998 titled The Slot Machine That Isn't.
Here is an excerpt:
"The Pala tribe promptly commissioned a Nevada company called Sierra Design Group to build a gambling device that met all the requirements and still, as they say, quacked like a slot machine.
Six months and several million dollars later, Sierra Design rolled out the result.
It has the soul of a lottery but the look and feel of a slot machine.
The new system actually conducts a lottery as described in the compact. It's just that the gambler is hardly aware of it."
The Slot Machine That Isn't - Los Angeles Times
This patent for this slot machine was issued. It's titled Video Lottery Game United States Patent US 6,168,521, B1. The inventors of the patent are very familiar names: Robert Luciano (Sierra Design Group), Art Bunce, Glenn Feldman, George Foreman, Jerome Levine, and on the last page Howard Dickstein was also added as an inventor.
Presumably this is the invention Pala commissioned and paid for. Yet no where is Pala mentioned in the patent. It could be there is another patent similar to this I have not yet seen.
Here is the patent:
Video Lottery Game United States Patent US 6,168,521, B1
Other patents were developed. Two were developed by Jerry Turk who managed the Pala Casino for 7 years. One of those patents is for Pala Craps and Pala Roulette. The Pala Band of Mission Indians is the Assignee on one of the patents.
United States Patent US 7,540,498 B2 Systems and Methods for Card Games That Simulate Non-Card Casino Table...
United States Patent Application US 2005/0032569 A1 Methods and Systems For Interactive Lottery Game Jerry ...
In 2003 Alliance Gaming Corp bought Robert Luciano's Sierra Design Group. which is now known as Bally Technologies
Alliance to buy Reno’s Sierra Design Group
After Prop 5 passed Class III slot machines seemed to be preferred to Class II slot machines. People who go to Vegas are familiar with Class III games and thus if they go to an Indian Casino with the same games there is a familiarity there that helps pry the dollars from their wallet.
But lately Class II machines are in resurgence. First off, the NIGC does not regulate Class II machines. Second, there are no limitations on how many Class II slot machines an Indian Casino can operate. Indian Casinos are limited to 2000 (or 2500?) Class III machines.
Second, Indian Casinos have successfully developed their own brand and no longer rely on Vegas familiarity. Indian Casinos now have their own unique games and even slot machines that their customers specifically come to play.
Thirdly, it is increasingly difficult to tell a Class II from a Class III machine. Often the only way to tell is by the internal mechanism. But some Class II machines have made them easier to identify. With each spin of the wheel there is a little bingo card near the top of the machine that displays the numbers drawn.
You thought you were playing a slot machine but you were really playing Bingo!
First, a little Patent 101. Let's say you invent something. You would then like to sell that product or service you have invented. But before one starts selling their invention they typically like to get some legal protection in the form of a patent. The inventor then would draft their patent and submit it to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for consideration.
Often there are multiple inventors and Patent Attorneys need to be hired to do an exhaustive patent search to make sure the invention doesn't already exist. More often than not an idea you may think is unique is already patented.
Usually the patent office rejects the first patent submission. The inventors then decide if they are going to revise the patent and resubmit or abandon the project. All this can cost a lot of money. Usually the minimum amount a patent will cost is about $7000 to $10,000. This is a rare case where the inventor can write the patent themselves, submit it themselves, do the patent search themselves, and address any concerns raised by the patent office themselves.
Patent costs can soar if a similar invention is found and legal challenges are mounted against the patent. Every reiteration and resubmission a patent goes through costs more money.
But if the inventors make it through this process then they are the proud owners of a U.S. Patent. It doesn't stop there though. If one plans to sell their product or service internationally one may decide to pursue patenting their invention in other countries such as in Japan or the European Union.
After all that the owners of the patent can do several things. First, then can produce and market their product on their own. Or they can sell the patent to another company. Or, more often than not, they can license their patent to another company or multiple companies who then use the patented technology to produce products and sell them. The owners of the patent are often paid Royalties and/or Licensing Fees for the right to use their intellectual property (IP).
Further, a patent can be licensed and sub-licensed multiple times. Even more complicated, if a company gets bought out that has a license to the technology then the company that bought the other company will assume ownership of that license.
Ok, for this discussion we also need a little background on Indian Gaming. A good primer on Indian Gaming is on Wiki about Native American Gaming. In a nut shell in the 1970's a couple of tribal members living on Indian Land in Minnesota received a property tax bill. Feeling they did not owe the property tax since they were on Indian Land they challenged the State and County in court. They lost. They appealed that decision to the Supreme Court which not only reviewed the case but made a ruling that " not only that states do not have authority to tax Indians on Indian reservations, but that they also lack the authority to regulate Indian activities by Indians on Indian reservations. (from Wiki)"
This paved the way for tribal gaming under the premise of tribal sovereignty. In 1980 the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians in California began operating a Bingo Hall. The Indio Police and Riverside County Sheriff promptly shut down the Bingo Hall. Cabazon took their case to the Supreme Court in 1986. The Supreme Court once again "ruled that Indian gaming was to be regulated exclusively by Congress and the federal government, not state government; with tribal sovereignty upheld, the benefits of gaming became available to many tribes. (from Wiki)"
Indian Gaming was born but complications still arose.
One complication was in California where Class III gaming was still illegal (traditional slot machines, craps, roulette, etc). California did have a State Lottery, Horse Race Tracks, and Poker Parlors but Class III gaming was still illegal.
Seeking ways to increase revenue tribes began looking at slot-like machines called Video Lottery Terminals. Since Bingo was already legal they sought slot machines that used a Bingo Mechanism instead of the Random Number Generators most Class III slot machines have. This lead to the creation of Class II Slot-like machines.
In the early days of Indian Gaming I remember people complaining about the machines. They didn't like the printed ticket. They wanted to feel the coins and hear the coins hit the tray. In the late 1990's this lead to a push at least in California to make Class III gaming legal on Indian Reservations. This lead to several tribes pursuing compacts with the State and ultimately lead to several ballot initiatives making Indian Gaming legal in California.
But while tribes could now operate Class III slot machines they were limited to 2000 machines per casino, had to pay the state a fee per machine, and still could not operate other games such as craps or roulette.
This lead to another round of inventions and patents that lead to the creation of crap-like and roulett-like games. I know Pala and Pechange both have "Pala Craps" and roulette and "Pechanga Craps" and roulette. Instead of rolling dice, cards are dealt that have pictures of dice. In the case of roulette instead of a ball landing on a number the wheel a card is drawn from a spinning wheel with a number on it.
Those of you who remember the early days of Indian Gaming may also remember playing Black Jack where an ante or "fee" had to be paid to the House. This was because at that time Black Jack had to be player banked and not house banked. The house could not make money on the loses of players.
The first document I have here is an article that appeared in the Los Angeles Times in 1998 titled The Slot Machine That Isn't.
Here is an excerpt:
"The Pala tribe promptly commissioned a Nevada company called Sierra Design Group to build a gambling device that met all the requirements and still, as they say, quacked like a slot machine.
Six months and several million dollars later, Sierra Design rolled out the result.
It has the soul of a lottery but the look and feel of a slot machine.
The new system actually conducts a lottery as described in the compact. It's just that the gambler is hardly aware of it."
The Slot Machine That Isn't - Los Angeles Times
This patent for this slot machine was issued. It's titled Video Lottery Game United States Patent US 6,168,521, B1. The inventors of the patent are very familiar names: Robert Luciano (Sierra Design Group), Art Bunce, Glenn Feldman, George Foreman, Jerome Levine, and on the last page Howard Dickstein was also added as an inventor.
Presumably this is the invention Pala commissioned and paid for. Yet no where is Pala mentioned in the patent. It could be there is another patent similar to this I have not yet seen.
Here is the patent:
Video Lottery Game United States Patent US 6,168,521, B1
Other patents were developed. Two were developed by Jerry Turk who managed the Pala Casino for 7 years. One of those patents is for Pala Craps and Pala Roulette. The Pala Band of Mission Indians is the Assignee on one of the patents.
United States Patent US 7,540,498 B2 Systems and Methods for Card Games That Simulate Non-Card Casino Table...
United States Patent Application US 2005/0032569 A1 Methods and Systems For Interactive Lottery Game Jerry ...
In 2003 Alliance Gaming Corp bought Robert Luciano's Sierra Design Group. which is now known as Bally Technologies
Alliance to buy Reno’s Sierra Design Group
After Prop 5 passed Class III slot machines seemed to be preferred to Class II slot machines. People who go to Vegas are familiar with Class III games and thus if they go to an Indian Casino with the same games there is a familiarity there that helps pry the dollars from their wallet.
But lately Class II machines are in resurgence. First off, the NIGC does not regulate Class II machines. Second, there are no limitations on how many Class II slot machines an Indian Casino can operate. Indian Casinos are limited to 2000 (or 2500?) Class III machines.
Second, Indian Casinos have successfully developed their own brand and no longer rely on Vegas familiarity. Indian Casinos now have their own unique games and even slot machines that their customers specifically come to play.
Thirdly, it is increasingly difficult to tell a Class II from a Class III machine. Often the only way to tell is by the internal mechanism. But some Class II machines have made them easier to identify. With each spin of the wheel there is a little bingo card near the top of the machine that displays the numbers drawn.
You thought you were playing a slot machine but you were really playing Bingo!
Thursday, June 14, 2012
The Deposition of Paula Lorenzo in Rumsey Indian Rancheria of Wintun Indians vs Howard Dickstein
The deposition of Paula Lorenzo goes with a previous post on the lawsuits of Rumsey Indian Rancheria of Wintun Indians vs Howard Dickstein.
Every Pala Member should be familiar with this case and Paula Lorenzo's deposition. Just a reminder, Howard Dickstein is Pala's attorney. Well, Howard Dickstein actually works for several gaming tribes. Or should I say several gaming tribes work for Howard Dickstein?
Paula Lorenzo is Chairwoman of the Rumsey Band. If you take a look at Corporate Wiki you will see there is a connection between Paula Lorenzo, Robert Smith, and Jerry Turk.
All three were members of a company called California Indian Gaming Development, LLC as well as California Indian Gaming Management, LLC.
You can do a business search for businesses located in California using the California Secretary of State. Go ahead and type in California Indian Gaming, select Limited Liability Company/Limited Partnership Name, and both CIGD and CIGM will pop up though both are now canceled.
Anyway, keep this all in mind while going over the Rumsey case. Take a look at what Howard Dickstein did at Rumsey then think of Pala. The Deposition of Paula Lorenzo in Rumsey Indian Rancheria of Wintun Indians vs Howard Dickstein
Every Pala Member should be familiar with this case and Paula Lorenzo's deposition. Just a reminder, Howard Dickstein is Pala's attorney. Well, Howard Dickstein actually works for several gaming tribes. Or should I say several gaming tribes work for Howard Dickstein?
Paula Lorenzo is Chairwoman of the Rumsey Band. If you take a look at Corporate Wiki you will see there is a connection between Paula Lorenzo, Robert Smith, and Jerry Turk.
All three were members of a company called California Indian Gaming Development, LLC as well as California Indian Gaming Management, LLC.
You can do a business search for businesses located in California using the California Secretary of State. Go ahead and type in California Indian Gaming, select Limited Liability Company/Limited Partnership Name, and both CIGD and CIGM will pop up though both are now canceled.
Anyway, keep this all in mind while going over the Rumsey case. Take a look at what Howard Dickstein did at Rumsey then think of Pala. The Deposition of Paula Lorenzo in Rumsey Indian Rancheria of Wintun Indians vs Howard Dickstein
Thursday, June 7, 2012
RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein
Howard Dickstein is an attorney representing several gaming tribes in California including the Pala Band of Mission Indians. Tribal Members should familiarize themselves with this lawsuit. There are two legal documents here for your consideration.
RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein
RUMSEY INDIAN RANCHERIA OF WINTUN INDIANS vs Howard Dickstein
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