The bpv Jadi Nemeth firm in Budapest is reporting that the Court of Justice of the European Union has published the Opinion of Advocate General Szpunar in case C-49/16 Unibet International confirming the arguments made by the firm in Luxembourg.
The bpv firm describes the matter as "a landmark case defining the Hungarian online gambling regulation."
According to bpv, "according to the official opinion published today in the above preliminary ruling procedure Advocate General Szpunar sides with Unibet’s arguments and proposes that the Court should find that Hungary’s rules regarding the award of online gambling concession rights are incompatible with the freedom to provide services. "
Andrea Jadi Nemeth, Managing Partner of bpv Jadi Nemeth, commented: "We believe the statements in the Advocate General Opinion can be considered as a milestone and may have a major impact on the future of Hungarian online gambling regulation." Fellow Partner Attila Kovacs added: "EU law sets forth strict requirements regarding Member State legislation on online gambling. The regulation adopted by Member States – including Hungary –should always be transparent, proportionate and non-discriminatory. The Opinion highlighted exactly these points; therefore it is even more likely that the CJEU will deliver a judgment on which we can effectively rely in the proceedings pending before the national court.”
