1-800-GAMBLER Legal Battle Won by CCGNJ, National Council for Problem Gambling Vows Appeal

^{Keith Whyte, pictured above, leads the National Council on Problem Gambling, which argues CCGNJ lacks the resources to run the 1-800-GAMBLER helpline nationwide. (Photo:  Susan Haigh / AP)}

New Jersey Superior Court Judge Douglas H. Hurd ruled Monday that the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (CCGNJ) has the rights to the 1-800-GAMBLER hotline, ordering that the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) stop operating the number by Sept. 29. 

Contract Extension Dispute Leads to Legal Fight for Helpline

Currently, the NCPG utilizes 1-800-GAMBLER as a national problem gambling helpline, as it has since 2022. However, it was CCGNJ that initially operated that phone number from 1983 through 2022. At that time, the non-profit licensed the number to NCPG in a three-year agreement that expired on May 21, 2025.

A dispute emerged over whether NCPG had properly exercised its option to extend the contract for an additional three years. The two sides agreed to extend the contract to July 15 to give them time to work out the issue. But NCPG claimed that CCGNC never responded to its attempts to enter into arbitration, which ultimately led to the lawsuit.

NCPG responded to Hurd’s ruling by saying it was “dismayed” with the decision.

“This decision will fundamentally hinder nationwide access to timely, confidential, and high-quality care for those in need of problem gambling support by taking critical services offline,” NCPG said in a statement. “Moreover, it will degrade public trust for the 121 million Americans who recognize 1-800-GAMBLER as the National Problem Gambling Helpline.”

In its statement, NCPG characterized CCGNJ as an organization ill-suited to running a national-level phone line, regardless of its intentions.

“As a state-level nonprofit, CCGNJ lacks the infrastructure and funding required to shoulder the significant and unpredictable responsibilities of running 1-800-GAMBLER nationwide, putting reliable access to timely, high-quality care for help-seekers at serious risk,” the statement read. 

NCPG Will ‘Aggressively Pursue’ Legal Options to Maintain the Hotline

NCPG also questioned CCGNJ’s capacity to manage a national hotline, noting that its own $1.4 million annual spend on the helpline equaled nearly half of CCGNJ’s annual revenue. The group also warned of other potenital concerns, including the elimination of text services, the loss of free language translation services, and the possibility that some states could be without any significant problem gambling resources should they lose access to 1-800-GAMBLER.

As a result, NCPG says, they plan to challenge Hurd’s ruling. 

“NCPG will aggressively pursue all appellate options concerning today’s decision and is in the process of filing an emergency motion asking the New Jersey Appellate Division to enter a stay to maintain the status quo for helpline operations while the appeal is considered,” the statement read. “It cannot be overstated that the loss of access to problem gambling resources via 1-800-GAMBLER, even temporarily, could have life or death consequences for individuals in crisis.”

For its part, CCGNJ has maintained throughout the legal battle that it intends to keep the helpline available for everyone who needs it nationwide.

“CCGNJ and the 1-800 GAMBLER has passed the test of time,” CCGNJ Executive Director Luis Del Orbe told SBC Americas in August. “The 1-800-GAMBLER helpline is not going to go away, ever.”