Recently, online poker has come under much scrutiny. Because of the innovative and fairly new technology behind it, there is no precedent spelling out the legality of online poker or wagering over the Internet in general. Currently, no player has ever been arrested or charged with a crime for playing poker online. However, this fact may change in the near future.

Professor I. Nelson Rose is one of leading authorities on online gambling. According to Rose, the United States federal statute clearly prohibits online gambling domestically or internationally. Despite this fact, the US government has done little in the way of prosecuting any offenders of this statute.

A statute called the Wire Act is commonly cited when making the case that online gambling should be considered a federal offense. A section of that statute reads, “Whoever being engaged in the business of betting or wagering knowingly uses a wire communication facility for the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of bets or wagers or information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers on any sporting event or contest, or for the transmission of a wire communication which entitles the recipient to receive money or credit as a result of bets or wagers, or for information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.”

While the Wire act clearly prohibits online betting on sports, it does not spell out its stance on online casinos or poker games, which are considered by some to be a game of chance. This is where the controversy and confusion begins.

The United States Justice Department has declared that poker and other casino games played online should be covered under the Wire Act. However, the Federal Appeals court has ruled that they do not believe the US Justice Departments’ interpretation is accurate. This inconsistency will no doubt ignite further discussion and eventually further legislation on the issue of online gambling.

As of now individual states directly regulate the legality of online gambling. If an individual is caught participating in online betting when it is prohibited in their state it may fall under the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970. This act specifies that it is a federal crime for five or more individuals to participate in a gambling business if it is illegal under state law.

However, in November of 2004 there was a World Trade Organization ruling that stated that by criminalizing online gambling the United States was violating international law. The World Trade Organizations Appellate Body held up this ruling in April of 2005.

In September of 2006, United States Congress passed a law making it illegal for a bank or any financial institution to transfer money to a website associated with internet gambling. This legislation made no mention of the Wire Act and did not specify whether or not playing online had any legal ramifications. However, this piece of legislation did make it more difficult for many players to enjoy gambling online and has turned them off from participating. Online gambling, specifically poker has been on the decline since this law was passed.

While currently there is still no definitive answer concerning the legality of playing poker online, there are some important points to consider in avoiding breaking any previously established laws. To begin with, poker players cannot own any share of the house rake. In addition, players can only make bets against each other, and these wagers cannot involve sports bets at all. Furthermore all players must comply with their individual states laws.