(Casino.org)—A conservative legal group representing the plaintiff in a suit against Bally’s (NYSE: BALY.T) and the city of Chicago declared victory in a case involving the casino operator’s planned initial public offering (IPO) in the city, which originally attempted to bar white men from purchasing shares.
The Liberty Justice Center, which represented Mark Glennon in his suit against Bally’s affiliates, the city of Chicago, and the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB), said it’s celebrating what it described as “a significant victory” after the regional casino operator recently updated the Chicago IPO filing to remove the exclusion of white men.
In a new securities filing dated April 22, Bally’s finally removed the requirement that purchasers be either a woman or minority,” said the legal organization in a statement. “This success now means that the project is open to the people of Chicago without regard to race or sex.”
As part of the host city agreement (HCA), Bally’s wanted to sell a 25% stake in the first gaming venue in the Chicago city limits, but the offering was originally confined to minorities and women. It gained some traction among those audiences, but also invited legal challenges from groups such as Liberty Justice which claimed the plan was discriminatory.
Maybe a Smart Move by Bally’s
In the April Form S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Bally’s warned that if the Chicago IPO proceeded as originally planned, it could lead to costly and time-consuming litigation, indicating it may prove prudent that the operator abandoned the no white men clause.
That clause may have been part of the reason why the gaming company has yet to sell shares in its permanent Chicago casino hotel. It’s been almost two years since Bally’s filed the original S-1 for the Chicago IPO, and in March, the offering was delayed because the SEC didn’t declare it effective.
For its part, the Liberty Justice Center believes the revised prospectus addresses the concerns it raised in Glennon v. Johnson, hailing it as a “win for equal opportunity in public offerings.”
“No one should be excluded from participating in our economy on the basis of their race or sex” said Reilly Stephens, senior counsel at the Liberty Justice Center. “We are glad to see Bally’s new offering allows the people of Chicago to invest in one of the city’s premier projects without discrimination or exclusion.”
Possible Risk Lingers for Bally’s in Chicago
Bally’s $1.7 billion casino in Chicago’s River West neighborhood is the gaming company’s most expensive project to date and it’s one that’s been fraught with controversy since former Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) selected the company as the winning bidder of the city’s lone casino permit three years ago.
In the aforementioned S-1, Bally’s cautioned investors that if it has to alter or terminate its HCA with Chicago, loss of license is possible. For now, that ominous scenario doesn’t appear likely and the gaming company and the city are getting the Glennon case out of the way.
“With the revised IPO, LJC’s objective of removing discriminatory provisions from the public project has been met. The next steps forward will include formal dismissal of the case and continued advocacy for equal protection under the law,” according to the legal group.