THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, January 13, 1996 TAG: 9601130297
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LYNN WALTZ, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
You play the Virginia lottery and win $15 million. When you go to pick up your winnings, the state refuses to pay - or says the lottery fund has run dry. So you sue to collect, right? Wrong, says the Virginia Supreme Court.
The high court ruled Friday that the Lottery Department is not legally required to pay one red cent to winning ticket holders. You can sue to collect bingo or raffle proceeds, but not lottery winnings. It will take an act of the General Assembly to close the loophole, lawyers say.
The ruling also said that agreements to pool money in playing the lottery are not legally enforceable.
``People in the office will no longer be able to share the game and expect to collect the profits. It will breed mistrust, because you can't enforce the agreement,'' said attorney Stephen C. Swain, who represented a group of North Carolina men who sued a former colleague for a share of a $9 million Virginia lottery jackpot.
``But this has further implications,'' Swain said. ``If you or I win the lottery, and the Lottery Commission will not pay off, under the law, you could not sue for your money.''
Friday's ruling was the end of a three-year legal battle for the group of North Carolina men who were hoping to collect part of the prize claimed by Walter Cole, a 74-year-old retired Elizabeth City longshoreman. But the lower court concluded that technically, Virginia law says gaming agreements are unenforceable.
The law reads that all ``contracts . . . whereof the whole or any part of the consideration be money or other valuable things won . . . at any game . .
The legislature recently amended the law to exclude bingo and raffle proceeds after a woman won $6,000 at bingo and the operator refused to pay her. However, Friday's Supreme Court ruling notes: ``Unfortunately . . . the General Assembly did not include a similar provision when it legalized lotteries.''
``This really shows the sloppiness or the carelessness of the General Assembly when they passed the lottery provision and rules and regulations,'' Swain said.
Cole - who will now be able to receive his money free and clear, minus substantial attorney fees - was pleased with the decision, said his attorney, J. Nelson Happy.
Cole feels the case has maligned his reputation. He has asserted from the start that he bought the ticket separately from the group and that the group agreed ahead of time what numbers would be played that day. The winning number was not one of them, he said.
It is unlikely state lottery officials would shortchange ticket holders. ``Players can be assured that the lottery will pay all prizes due to players and we will have to take a close look at exactly what this court decision means,'' said Paula Otto, director of public affairs for the Virginia Lottery.
Still, Happy said, the message from the Supreme Court is clear.
``You can't rely on the law to enforce agreements,'' he said. ``If you're entering a pool with your friends, you've got to trust them.''
And, Swain says, until the legislature changes the law, you've also got to trust the state to pay off.
If you're in a trusting mood, the Lotto jackpot this week is $5.5 million. The drawing is tonight at 10:58.
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA LOTTERY by CNB