Operators dealt blow in court battle against Norway payments blocking

Norwegian operators have lost the first phase of their legal battle against Norway’s payments blocking regime after a court ruled in favour of the government last week.

The case was bought by payments firm Entercash and trade group, the European Betting and Gaming Association (EGBA), arguing that Norway’s blocking was not consistent with the European Union’s Payment Service Directive or the freedom to provide services in the EU.

However the Oslo District Court ruled on Friday in favour of Norway on the first of those questions, with judge Anne Cathrine Haug-Hustad saying: “The State…is acquitted in so far as the allegations are based on the assertion that the decisions are invalid because they lack internal legal authority and contravene the Payment Services Directive.”

“There is no doubt that the regulations, and thus the decision, are based on law,” Haug-Hustad said.

The second part of the case has yet to be heard however; essentially whether payment blocking is a suitable measure to enforce the Norwegian laws and is permissible under EU law.

“As a result, it is not possible now to determine whether any of the parties have ‘won the case’ or ‘been granted a significant claim’,” Haug-Hustad added.

The EGBA told EGR it was undergoing a “legal translation of the court judgement” and would have a full statement on its website by end of this week.