$3 Billion Lawsuit Against Wynn Resorts Quashed by Federal Judge

$3bln lawsuit against Wynn Resorts was dismissed. Sterling Suffolk claimed Wynn used fraudulent means in acquiring the Encore Boston Harbor casino license.

Sterling Suffolk Suffers Loss in Court after Judge Quashes Lawsuit

Wynn Resorts can breathe a sigh of relief after U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti Saris quashed a $3 billion lawsuit facing the company. According, to the lawsuit, Wynn Resorts was accused of cheating its way into winning the Encore Boston Harbor casino license.

The lawsuit was filed by Sterling Suffolk Racecourse last year and according to them, Wynn Resorts used fraudulent means when acquiring the license for Encore Boston Harbor.

Some of the allegations leveled against Wynn Resorts include political cronyism, kickbacks, and the most damning of them all – Steve Wynn, the company’s founder, was accused of concealing allegations of sexual misconduct.

 In total, Sterling Suffolk filed claims to the tune of over $1 billion excluding legal fees and other damages. Wynn Resorts is still battling a sexual harassment case in court.

In the ruling issued by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti Saris, the judge said that the allegations raised by Sterling Suffolk Racecourse don’t constitute racketeering violations as defined by the Federal RICO act.

The ruling didn’t go down well with Sterling Suffolk and said that it will explore all available options. On its hand, Wynn Resorts didn’t respond to the comments.

Lawsuits Against Wynn Resorts

The rivalry between the two enterprises was thought to have ended in 2014 after the Massachusetts Gaming Commission awarded Wynn Resorts the much-contested license. Sterling Suffolk had plans to set up a casino in partnership with Mohegan Sun but after their plans were dimmed, Sterling Suffolk moved to court accusing Wynn Resorts of corrupting the process to acquire the license.

This is not the first time Wynn Resorts has found itself on the defensive regarding the licensing process that eventually led to the Wynn Encore Boston Harbor. The city of Boston vs Wynn casino is one of them. The former lost according to a 24-page ruling issued by Judge Janet L. Sanders, saying that the Gaming Commission acted correctly when issuing Wynn Resorts the license.

In 2014, Mohegan moved to court to sue the gaming commission. In the lawsuit, Mohegan claimed that the gaming commission favored Wynn and wanted the license withdrawn. The case is still pending.

That’s not all. Wynn was also embroiled in a land dispute with FBT Everett Realty. The latter took issue with the fact that Wynn paid $35 million for the land. This was after regulators poked holes in the criminal backgrounds of two FBT associates. According to reports, the initial deal with FBT was valued at $75 million. The case is also pending.

After declining to speak on the ruling, all eyes are on Sterling Suffolk to see whether they’ll walk away or they’ll pay their lawyers more for more litigation.