Racetracks still get revenue
As part of a lawsuit by Ontario’s horse breeders, a provincial court judge in Canada has ordered Premier Kathleen Wynne and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. to hand over documents related to the cancellation of a revenue-sharing deal that gave horse breeders a cut of slot revenues at racetracks.
A group of standard-bred horse breeders have asked to see the documents as part of the discovery process. They believe the files will shed light on the decision to terminate the deal, which ran from 1998 to 2012. According to the Metro Daily News, over the years the program has generated billions for the province and the horseracing industry.
“This case involves too much money, and too many people whose livelihoods depend on a fair and transparent discovery process,” Ontario Superior Court Justice Michael Emery wrote in his decision. “The plaintiffs are entitled to a proper disclosure by each defendant for the production of documents from which facts can be determined, or that will provide the basis to conduct examinations for discovery to determine those facts.”
The documents must be produced by March 31.
After the program ended, the breeders note, the government continued to compensate racetrack owners, but excluded the breeders.
The province and OLG “kept the slots where they were, they negotiated more favorable arrangements with the racetracks, they compensated the racetracks, but they cut the breeders out and kept the money,” Toronto lawyer Jonathan Lisus told the News.
