Supreme Court of Florida

Florida Statutes section 550.615(6), which places restrictions on intertrack wagering under certain circumstances, is unconstitutional as a special law enacted in the guise of a general law and without compliance with the specific requirements for the enactment of special laws because there was no reasonable possibility that the classification used in the statute would ever apply to another area of the state after the statute was amended in 1996.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/06/2007
• Published 09/06/2007

Judges

• ANSTEAD, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of Florida

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Major B. Harding and Stephen C. Emmanuel of Ausley and McMullen, Tallahassee, FL, and Joseph M. Helton, Jr. and S. ThomasPeavey Hoffer, Assistant General Counsels, Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Tallahassee, FL, for Appellants State of Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Par-Mutuel Wagering., Harold F.X. Purnell and Gary R. Rutledge of Rutledge, Ecenia, Purnell and Hoffman, P.A., Tallahassee, FL, for Appellants Hartman-Tyner, Inc., West Flagler Associates, Ltd., The Aragon Group, Inc., Summersport Enterprises, LLLP, and Florida Gaming Centers, Inc., Bruce David Green, on behalf of Florida Horseman's Benevolent and Protective Association, Inc., Fort Lauderdale, FL, as Amicus Curiae.


• For Appellees:
  
• Cynthia S. Tunnicliff and Peter M. Dunbar of Pennington, Moore, Wilkinson, Bell and Dunbar, P.A., Tallahassee, FL for Appellee.