Project No. 58

Commenced: 1975
Completed: 1977

The law of securities for gaming debts was regulated by legislation dating back to 1664. Since that time, many statutes had been passed which resulted in great complexity and uncertainty, particularly in respect of the civil liability arising from a gaming debt contract.

The Gaming Act 1835 (Imp) was an English imperial statute that was adopted in Western Australia by an Ordinance passed in 1844. Under s 2 of the Act, a person who has given a ‘note, bill or mortgage’ as security for, or in satisfaction of, a gaming debt and who actually pays to any ‘indorsee, holder or assignee’ of such security the money secured, may recover that money from the person to whom he gave the security.

Although actions under s 2 were rare in Western Australia, on at least four occasions action had been threatened. This was a source of anxiety for bookmakers as it gave people paying a betting debt by cheque an opportunity to recover the value of the cheque.