In a landmark decision issued on May 14, 2018, the United States Supreme Court declared unconstitutional a federal law that provided a monopoly to Nevada in the sports betting industry, paving the way for New Jersey to proceed forward with legislation to permit legalized sports betting in New Jersey.
"The legalization of sports gambling requires an important policy choice, but the choice is not ours to make," Justice Samuel Alito, a New Jersey native, said in the opinion of the court. "Congress can regulate sports gambling directly, but if it elects not to do so, each State is free to act on its own.
The Supreme Court's 7-2 vote overturned a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit which sided with the Justice Department and several major professional sports leagues which argued that the federal law preempted states from engaging in legalized sports betting.
A copy of the Court's decision is found here.