Malta’s Bill 55 receives another negative CJEU opinion
It’s the latest in a series of opinions against Malta’s intent to shield igaming operators from legal action.
Luxembourg.- Nicholas Emiliou, Advocate General (AG) at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), has issued another opinion criticising Malta’s Bill 55. It’s his second statement in recent weeks after he last month issued his view on a lawsuit against the gambling operator Tipico in a bid to recoup losses incurred when online gambling was unlicensed in Germany.
Emiliou’s latest opinion on Bill 55 follows a request from an Austrian court that’s also hearing a case seeking the reimbursement of gambling losses. The court sought clarification on whether Bill 55 aligns with EU law.
Introduced in 2023, Bill 55, formally Article 56A of Malta’s Gambling Act, was designed to shield Malta-licensed gaming companies from foreign court rulings. While Emiliou found the specific Austrian request inadmissible, he stated that national laws such as Bill 55 are “manifestly incompatible with the rules governing the recognition and enforcement of judgments” in the EU.
Emiliou stressed that rulings against Maltese operators in other EU states must be “recognised and enforced in all other member states, including Malta.”
The opinion is not binding, but it could influence local courts’ decisions. On April 16, the CJEU issued a binding preliminary ruling affirming that EU law does not prevent member states from banning online gambling services originating elsewhere in the EU, contrary to Malta’s argument that MGA-licensed operators can use EU trade freedoms to operate across borders.
Emiliou’s stance reinforces that position, as he said that “other member states are entitled to apply their respective gambling laws to operators licensed in Malta.” He added that “situations are bound to arise in which the services provided by a gaming operator holding a Maltese licence are unlawful in a Member State while being lawful under Maltese law.”
