Lotteries and Public Policy in American Law

Abstract

The significance of public participation in playing lotteries in modern American life led to Congress’s creation of the National Gambling Impact Study Commission (NGISC) in 1996. Many state constitutions and statutes are silent concerning lotteries, however the author argues that in the context of applying public policy to gambling per se, American common law has remained stable.

This Article discusses the common law principles of public policy applicable to lotteries in America. Part I introduces the principles and Part II examines how public policy is created. Part III explores the origins of public policy with respect to lotteries in America and presents the history and development of lotteries over a discreet time span of American law. Part IV follows the evolution from past to present of public policy applicable to lotteries in America. Part V assesses the legal impact on public policy of legislative changes in state lottery laws. Part VI reflects upon the current and possible future public policy landscape with respect to lotteries in America and ruminates on whether or not the present era represents any departure or critical turning points in American judicial philosophy in the context of lotteries. The author concludes by examining the judiciary’s prowess in adapting and applying public policy to lotteries as they have been raised throughout American law.

Keywords: lotteries, public policy, public policy and American lotteries, gambling, history of lotteries

JEL Classification: K10, K23, K40