Phil Ivey’s legal team are contesting an allegation from the Borgata’s legal team that Ivey’s case is identical to one between 14 gamblers and the Golden Nugget in 2012 where the judge sided with the casino.

A legal team representing The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in their Baccarat battle with Phil Ivey are arguing that his case mirrors that of a group of gamblers who were forced to return $1.5m in winnings to the Golden Nugget.

In that 2012 case, 14 players realised that the deck of cards they were using in a game of Mini-Baccarat had not been shuffled and quickly increased their bet sizing from $10 a hand to $5,000. They won 41 straight hands.

The judge presiding over that case declared that the games were ‘not authorised’ because the cards were not pre-shuffled ‘in accordance with any regulation’, and this violated the Casino Control Act. The judge ordered the players to return their winnings plus outstanding chips. The casino had to refund the money the gamblers put up to play.