A court doesn’t only deal with serious cases; it handles cases that will take you by surprise. The French court on Monday had to take on a case that dealt with a poker game that had been played a Saudi Sheikh and a poker player from America in 2014. It gave a verdict this week but the trial took place last October.
High-Roller Poker Player Challenges a Saudi Sheikh
Rick Salomon, the poker player had sued Raad al-Khereiji, the Saudi Sheikh. He had lost $2.8 million against the Sheikh in a poker game. Purportedly, the Sheikh was to pay him back when the high-stakes underground game had been in progress against Salomon near Cannes at Tiara Miramar Beach Hotel.
It is an unfortunate moment for Salomon as the French court does not think that the Saudi Sheikh should be responsible for paying the debt. Thus, the court has ruled in favor of Raad al-Khereiji, the Saudi Sheikh.
High-Stake Games Lead to High-Stake Cases
According to the reports, the case had no hope from the very beginning as it was based on the law of 1804 which is already forgotten by people. According to the law, a kind of gaming debt can be enforced by courts has to include weapons, horse racing, tennis, chariot races or some other games that involve exercise and physical skills.
Paul-Albert Iweins, the lawyer of the Sheikh has taken a stand on the definition that has been mentioned above and has asserted that poker doesn’t involve any physical exercise or skill and is purely a game of chance. The lawyer of Salomon, Ronald Sokol, tried winning the case by taking a different approach. He focused on the point that the type of game that Khereiji and Salomon played in the year 2014 had been exhausting as it continued for 48 hours without any type of break.
The Sheikh’s lawyer made a statement saying, “The only explanation is that his request was contrary to the law.”
Salomon’s Lawyer Doesn’t Give Up
Ronald Sokol says that he is thinking of taking the case to the Supreme Court of France as he thinks that the final verdict could be different. The legal team of Rick Salomon has dug up the gambling record of Khereiji from Las Vegas to use it as evidence.
His gambling records show that he has spent $34 million in just 29 months on gambling and comes from one of the wealthiest families of Saudi Arabia. He had played in Casino in the Ivey Room of the Aria Resort where the minimum of the table was $100,000. This can serve as a proof to show to the court that he has been an avid gambler.
Another thing which is troubling team Salomon is that the court knows about the witnesses who had been present that night. As the game went in the wrong direction for Khereiji, he had given an assurance that his Los Angeles’ lawyer is going to take care of the debt. However, several months lawyer, the lawyer only got in touch to inform that the Sheikh the game was a friendly one and thus, there is no financial debt.
Salomon believed that he won $40 million in 2014 but the hope of getting $2.8 million might have been lost forever.
