The U.S. District Court South District of New York has announced that they will allow extra time for Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars, and Absolute Poker/UB to respond to the court’s official legal complaint. The deadline, originally set at November 30, has been moved up to January 2, 2012.
This decision comes as a result of several maneuvers made on the part of some of the accused professionals involved, including Rafe Furst and Howard Lederer. The situation has also been increasingly complicated by the court’s decision to amend their complaint in the later half of September.
Specifically, the legal moves made by Furst and Lederer have caused further issues within the court. Both men have followed the path of former Full Tilt bigwigs Chris Ferguson and Ray Bitar, who invoked a law known as Rule (5)(a) of the Supplemental Rules for Admiralty and Maritime Claims. This piece of legislation allows for individuals to claim the assets contained in seized bank accounts. If successful, such a move would put large chunks of money back into the pockets of the men behind the Full Tilt Machine.
Adding fuel to the overall fire is the aforementioned amendment to the government’s legal complaint. Those in the know will remember the comments of U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, which leveled an accusatory finger at the former poker giant:
“Full Tilt,” he said, “was not a legitimate poker company, but a global Ponzi scheme. Full Tilt insiders lined their own pockets with funds picked from the pockets of their most loyal customers while blithely lying to both players and the public alike about the safety and security of the money deposited.”
With all of the drama surrounding the downfall of the former poker giant, it is surprising that the U.S. Government has announced that (pending the sale of the company) they may allow Full Tilt to re-enter the American market. This, of course, would hinge upon a legalization on the federal level. One has to wonder if American customers would be willing to raise the Full Tilt flag once again.