The U.S. Justice Department insists online gambling is against the law. But that's not stopping online bettors from rolling the dice, according to Elliot Borin in Wired Magazine's OnLine Gaming Illegal (Wink, Wink).

"Many watchers of online casino operations remain convinced the industry is still on a roll. As proof, they cite a federal court decision in Louisiana that could de-fang the Justice Department's virtual bite, Congress' repeated repudiation of such measures as the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act and a successful Nevada ballot initiative directing the state legislature to begin issuing online gambling licenses. (Several Las Vegas casinos now operate online by way of the Isle of Man.) "

"In a recent letter to the Nevada Gaming Control Board, the Justice Department restricted Nevada's Internet casino business and banned all Internet wagering that crosses state lines. "

"The Wire Act appears to outlaw Internet gambling," said Bradley Gross, a partner in the Technology Law Group of Becker & Poliakoff, referring to the prohibition of the Federal Interstate Wire Act of 1960 against engaging "in the business of betting or wagering knowingly or (using) a wire communication facility for the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of bets or wagers or information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers."

"However, the act specifically limits its application to sporting events and contests, and casino games are generally not considered contests because the participant is competing against mathematical odds, not other people," Gross said. "