The Illinois First District Appellate Court recently reversed the decision of a Cook County Circuit Court judge who in 2021 dismissed the Forest County Potawatomi Community’s lawsuit for “lack of standing” when the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) granted Full House Resorts early approval for a Waukegan gaming license.
The Forest County Potawatomi contended officials didn’t give the tribe fair consideration when casino operators vying for the license were forwarded to the IGB for a final decision.
The case now will go back to the lower court unless attorneys for Waukegan and the gaming board take the case to the Illinois Supreme Court.
In a statement, Forest County Potawatomi Attorney General Jeff Crawford wrote that the higher court “acknowledged Potawatomi’s detailed allegations of the city’s failure to lawfully conduct the casino selection process and recognized that retracting the current casino license and repeating the casino selection process would remedy Potawatomi’s claims. We look forward to further consideration of those claims before the Circuit Court.”
Full House Resorts has been operating the Temporary by American Place in Waukegan since February, while the permanent $400 million casino is set to open in early 2026. Through the end of June, the 70,000-square-foot temporary casino, located near Waukegan’s Fountain Square shopping mall, has taken in more than $30 million in adjusted gross income, about $221,000 per day, according to IGB data.
Justice Raymond Mitchell wrote in the appeals court decision, “Potawatomi Casino pursued a significant business opportunity to fairly compete for a casino license, and where that opportunity was denied due to the city’s alleged failure to perform the process lawfully, there is a distinct and palpable injury.”
He added if the Potawatomi win the case this time, the IGB could restart the selection process “even after it has issued the applicant a temporary operating permit. This remedy would correct the alleged injury since it would require the city to conduct the certification process again without the alleged illegality or unfairness.
“Because the injury is the lost opportunity, Potawatomi Casino need not be certain whether it would ultimately secure the city’s certification to the board in a fair process, so long as the opportunity itself is given.”
Tribal officials previously said Las Vegas-based Full House had an unfair advantage because former Waukegan Mayor Sam Cunningham told city council members which bids to approve in a “rigged process,” discriminating against the tribe although it had a high score on a city-hired consultant’s evaluation. The Potawatomi also allege the city violated the Illinois Open Meetings Act and the state’s gambling expansion law.
The tribe also noted former state Senator Michael Bond, chief executive officer at Tap Room Gaming, donated thousands of dollars to council members who voted according to Cunningham’s advice. Specifically, in the weeks leading up to the 2017 election, Bond directed more than $50,000 to Cunningham. And before the 2019 city council election, Bond and his network of companies and committees donated $250,000 to his preferred candidates; his donations basically fully funded four winning candidates.
Attorneys for Waukegan have dismissed Potawatomi’s claims, stating the city has absolute immunity from the lawsuit and also that the tribe cannot prove that the city did not have good reason to reject it. In federal court filings, the attorneys said “this scorched-earth lawsuit is factually suspect,” that it would stifle development and eliminate potential competitors of the tribe’s Milwaukee casino.
