Canadian Group Files Class-Action Lawsuit Against Full Tilt Poker

A consumer group from Quebec has filed a national class-action lawsuit against Full Tilt Poker, in an attempt to get restitution for Canadian players who cannot access their FTP accounts.

The lawsuit, filed by the Groupe des droits des consommateurs, comes as a response to the June 30 shutdown of Full Tilt Poker’s worldwide operations due to the site having its operating license pulled by the Alderney Gambling Commission. Prior to that, Full Tilt had already been forced out of the US market due to indictments by the US Department of Justice earlier in the year.

"The class action involves Full Tilt Poker's illegal freezing of clients' money that's kept in accounts available through the website www.fulltiltpoker.com," the group stated in a press release.

According to reports, Full Tilt Poker may owe around $150 million to their customers worldwide. Lawyers involved in the class action lawsuit say that approximately 10% of that amount – or as much as $15 million – may belong to Canadian players.

Interestingly, the lawsuit not only mentions corporate entities related to Full Tilt Poker – such as Tiltware LLC and Pocket Kings – but also many of the players affiliated with the site, including Phil Ivey, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson and Jennifer Harman.

This is not the first class-action lawsuit filed against Full Tilt Poker since the site has stopped providing service to players. In July, American players filed a similar lawsuit seeking restitution from Full Tilt Poker for their inability to access player accounts.

In recent weeks, Full Tilt Poker has attempted to find an investor to bring needed capital into the company. Such an investment is seen as a necessary step on the road to repaying their players and resuming operations, which have now been suspended for well over two months.