The operators of the World Poker Tour were distracted from their business this week after a lawsuit was brought against them by many of the top professional poker players. According to WPT Enterprises the lawsuit has been settled. The lawsuit was concerning the player release form that is used every year by the World Poker Tour. The lawsuit was filed by seven players and was made public when they announced it at a press conference in Las Vegas at the Rio during the 2006 World Series Of Poker. The settlement of the lawsuit required that they change the World Poker Tour’s player release form.
Chris Ferguson, Annie Duke, Howard Lederer, Andrew Bloch, and Phil Gordon were the five original players to file the lawsuit. Joe Hachem and Greg Raymer were the other two that were originally a part of the suit – but they backed out of it before the settlement was agreed upon.
In the original suit that was filed the players stated that the WPTE player release form and the terms on it left them no choice – but to violate the rights to pictures that the players and their respective sponsors had contracted for. The form also forced them to break previous endorsement deals that had been agreed upon. Because they could not break these prevous agreements they were forced to sit out on the events at the World Poker Tour.
The lawsuit was enclosed in anti-trust terms that stated that the WPTE and their partner casinos wrongfully agreed to take out any competition by violating the property rights of the players involved. In defense the WPTE stated that their standard release player form was not meant in any way to be "in violation of antitrust or other laws." The new player release form will not be changed by WPTE – but will be changed to address the concerns and problems brought up in the lawsuit.
A note on the WPTE release settlement stated, "WPTE continues to deny any liability or wrongdoing, but wants to settle its differences with the players so that the tour can focus on its continued growth rather than litigation." WPTE founder and CEO Steve Lipscomb said, "We are glad to put this dispute behind us, and we look forward to working with all players to grow the sport of poker."
Chris Ferguson spoke for all the players when he said, "We are happy to have come to an agreement that is fair to all players, and to have put in place a new release that clears up ambiguities in how players' images may be used. We are especially happy that this new release will apply to all poker players who wish to participate in WPT tournaments and events. WPTE has created some of the best poker events in the world, and we are excited to participate in them once again."
