Texas Supreme Court Lets Dallas Poker Clubs Keep On Dealing

• Texas Supreme Court declines case against Dallas poker clubs
• Appeals court ruling protects Texas Card House occupancy permit
• Legality of social poker rooms in Texas still uncertain
  

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Poker clubs in Dallas can breathe a little easier after the Texas Supreme Court declined to hear a case that would have shut down the popular Texas Card House and its competitors.

The Supreme Court’s decision does not resolve the matter of whether the clubs’ operations are legal in Texas – that’s something that may still be determined further down the line – but it does allow them to continue their operations, despite opposition from state officials.

Dallas first approved poker clubs in 2020, allowing them to run as “social” card rooms where players pay membership or seat fees, but the house does not take a cut of the pot.

The card rooms argue this sidesteps the state’s ban on gambling, which allows “a defense to prosecution” if “the actor engaged in gambling [is] in a private place [and] no person received any economic benefit other than personal winnings.”

Sudden Change of Heart

In October 2020, the Texas Card House received city-issued certification – that’s after owner Ryan Crow spent more than two years engaging in meetings with city officials to find an approved location.

However, the city’s own Board of Adjustment, a panel of volunteers appointed by the council, sided with the club during public hearings and restored the permit. The city then sued both the Texas Card House and the board to reverse that decision.

A district judge initially agreed with the city, but in August 2024 the Fifth Court of Appeals in Dallas threw that decision out. The appeals judges said the trial court should have deferred to the board’s decision, which found no violation of city code. The Supreme Court’s rejection essentially upholds that decision.

Legal Weirdness

The unusual situation of the city battling its own board in court – essentially suing itself – has raised eyebrows, not least because taxpayers footed the bill, with the City Council approving at least $550,000 in outside legal fees by early 2023. Later reporting by The Dallas Observer suggested the ceiling could climb closer to $620,000.

For now, the ruling means Texas Card House and another club, Shuffle 214, can keep their permits. A third club, Poker House Dallas, closed in 2023 after a judge sided with the city in a separate case. Meanwhile, Champions Social Club in Far North Dallas is still appealing to city officials to open.