A company operating a bingo hall in Cork city as an agent for a charity has won a High Court declaration that its activities are lawful.
However, Omega Leisure Ltd, which sought the declaration after a Garda raid on its premises early last month prevented bingo sessions proceeding, is not entitled to damages as a result of the raid, Mr Justice Frank Clarke also ruled.
The judge dismissed the company's arguments that Togher-based Garda Supt Charles Barry, who sought warrants to carry out the raid, was guilty of misfeasance (improper execution of a lawful act) in public office. He also ruled that claims for damages for trespass and for property allegedly wrongly detained could not succeed.
The judge made the declarations in a decsion today on key issues in the proceedings by Omega Leisure, trading as Rock Bingo Club, against Supt Barry, the Garda Commissioner and the State. His reasons for his decisions will be set out in full judgment on the case to be delivered later.
The company brought the proceedings after bingo books and other documents were seized by gardaí from the premises at Deanrock, Togher, on foot of a warrant obtained from a District Court earlier. The seizure was made on November 1st just half an hour before the first of Omega's planned bingo sessions were due to start.
Constance Cassidy SC, for the company, argued it was operating as an agent for a charity under a valid lottery licence and was very concerned the Garda actions were preventing its bingo sessions proceeding. Supt Barry appeared to be operating a "systematic policy" of ensuring gambling does not take place in his area, it was claimed.
The company said it had spent €750,000 fitting out the 1,000 seater hall and planned to run bingo games five nights a week. It claimed it was entitled to run bingo games for charities which had been issued lottery licences for the relevant district.
Omega entered an agency agreement on October 12th last with the Mercy Hospital Foundation, a charity which raises money for the Mercy University Hospital, Cork. Under that agreement, the company will run bingo games for the charity and is entitled to a maximum 40 per cent of the proceeds.
It is believed an estimated 20 other companies operate similar agency agreements for charities across the State.
The State denied any wrong doing in the matter and argued gardaí should not be restrained carrying out their duties under the 1956 Gaming and Lotteries Act. It also raised issues as to the lawfulness of such agency operations in the context of the scale of those operations.
Today, Mr Justice Clarke granted Omega a declaration the conduct of a lottery licensed under Section 28 of the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956 is not unlawful by reason of the fact the licensee enters into an agency agreement with a company such as Omega to conduct the lottery, provided the agency fee paid to Omega did not exceed 40 per cent of the proceeds (or less if the licensee used other monies to promote the lottery in question).
The fact a company such as Omega may carry on a large number of such lotteries as an agent does not affect the legality of the conduct of the lottery concerned, the judge said.
He also found that the fact it may be intended to carry on the lottery through an agent such as Omega was not, of itself, a ground for the proper refusal of a license under the provisions of the Gaming Act.
The operation of "Pongo machines" - a system under which a traditional bingo card in printed on a table in a permanent fashion and the bingo player plays by inserting a coin in a slot in the table - as described in the case did not render the Omega operation a gaming machine within the meaning of Section 43 of the Finance Act 1975, he said.
