It’s been a roller coaster ride for the online poker industry over the last month. In June, HR 5767, which would have suspended the regulations of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, was defeated in Committee by virtue of a verbal vote. Last week, Democrats in Congress struck back. Jim McDermott, from Washington State, introduced legislation that would earmark up to $40 billion over the next ten years to underserved populations for job training and educational assistance. In the not-too-distant future, you can expect to hear more out of the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association, or iMGEA for short. The organization will soon be filing a lawsuit in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, an important step in the fight to legalize online poker in the U.S.

The organization’s case must be filed by the end of August, giving Executive Director Ed Leyden just one month to fine-tune his arguments. He commented to PocketFives.com from his office in Washington, D.C., “We’re preparing our case and gathering thoughts from industry leaders who will be participating in the brief preparation and the review process. Hopefully we’ll be able to submit something that makes the case of defining what our individual rights should be online. We have leading lawyers from academia and the bar helping us hone our arguments.” Leyden and company filed a case declaring that the UIGEA was unconstitutional last year. In March, iMEGA was granted standing to sue in a court of law. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals, which encompasses parts of the Northeastern United States, is its next target.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals, according to Leyden, is a progressive-thinking court which is mindful of First Amendment rights, such as the ones iMEGA is bringing into the spotlight. However, “we realize this is an aggressive posture and we need to do as good of a job as we possibly can. We have to provide coherent and well-supported arguments in order to be able to get a landmark decision.” Leyden is mindful of the recent defeat of HR 5767 despite bi-partisan support by two high-profile Congressmen: “The best thing that could happen would be for a court to say that the UIGEA is unconstitutional. That may be the only way that the proponents of the UIGEA will be able to revisit the issue.”

In a House Financial Services Committee hearing in April, representatives from the U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve strongly stated that enforcing the UIGEA was nearly impossible. Armed with vague regulations that did not specify what was legal and what wasn’t, the financial services industry was left to interpret the law and police it. This left many banks and other institutions up in arms and led to the introduction of HR 5767. Leyden states, “The testimony at the April hearing buttresses our arguments and provides additional ammunition on the inherent vagueness of the UIGEA. The entire process has been reinforcement for the arguments that we’ll make.”

HR 6501 was introduced by Congressman Jim McDermott last week. For the first time, the internet gambling has a cause to rally behind: educational assistance for those in foster care and job training for those in old-world industries. Leyden comments on his stance on the Investing in our Human Resources Act: “We think it’s a step in the right direction. I have to say that we’re in favor of it. Whether this is enough to move things forward is hard to say. Any legislation of this nature will be difficult to move out of Congress, especially as we come closer to election season. Certainly, the work that has gone into this provision is helpful. We do see the wisdom of pointing out the fiscal benefits that would accrue from sensible regulation.”

It’s important to note that iMEGA is not just a proponent of internet gambling. After all, the “G” in iMEGA stands for “Gaming.” If you visit imega.org, you’ll find that the organization’s focus is ensuring that “openness and freedom will enable the Internet to become a means for citizens in national and global economies to raise standards for all who are touched by it.” In essence, because the internet gambling industry has come under fire, iMEGA has focused its attack in that slice of the entire pie. Its overall purpose is to preserve the freedoms that the internet affords to us all.

With iMEGA’s legal decision slowly coming to a head, Leyden believes that it’s going to take decisions from several branches of government in order to overturn the UIGEA once and for all: “It goes to show that it will require not only the political solution to this issue, but a judicial solution that works hand in hand. Doing that, we can formulate a reasonable and balanced approach.” Leyden noted that the checks and balances involved in legalizing internet gambling are exactly what the founding fathers of the United States would have wanted.

In the meantime, iMEGA officials will spend the next thirty days formulating the arguments necessary to win over the three judge appellate panel. PocketFives.com will be bringing you all of the latest from the lawsuit against the federal government. Visit iMEGA’s website for more details.