Common Gaming Houses Act · 2019 Revised Edition
4. Offences connected with gaming houses and lotteries
Official textFrom Attorney General's Chambers, unchanged
Any person who —
being the owner or occupier or having temporary use or otherwise thereof, keeps or uses a place as a common gaming house;
place
“place” means any house, office, room or building and any place or spot whether open or enclosed and includes a ship, boat or other vessel whether afloat or not and any vehicle;
permits a place of which he is owner or occupier or of which he has temporary use or otherwise, to be kept or used by another person as a common gaming house;
common gaming house
“common gaming house” includes — (a) any place kept or used for gaming, to which the public or any class of the public has or may have access; (b) any place kept for habitual gaming, whether the public or any class of the public has or may have access to it or not; (c) any place kept or used for the purpose of a public lottery; (d) any place (including a place which is owned, occupied, possessed, kept, used or maintained by any society or any other organisation, body or group of persons, whether or not that society, organisation, body or group is established by or under any written law) — (i) where four or more persons are gaming; (ii) where any game specified in the Schedule is being played; or (iii) where gaming is carried out and for which payment is made by any person to any society, organisation, body or group of persons or any other person as consideration for permitting gaming in such place;
has the care or management of, or in any manner assists in the management of, a place kept or used as a common gaming house, or assists in carrying on a public lottery;
public lottery
“public lottery” means a lottery to which the public or any class of the public has or may have access and every lottery is deemed, until the contrary be proved, to be a public lottery;
receives directly or indirectly any money or money’s worth for or in respect of any chance in, or event or contingency connected with, a public lottery, or sells or offers for sale or gives or delivers any lottery ticket;
lottery ticket
“lottery ticket” includes any paper, figure, writing, symbol or other article whatsoever which either expressly or tacitly entitles or purports to entitle the holder or any other person to receive any money or money’s worth on the happening of any event or contingency connected with any public lottery;
Common Gaming Houses 8
gaming
“gaming” means playing any game of chance or of mixed chance and skill for money or money’s worth and includes — (a) playing any game specified in the Schedule; and (b) playing or operating any gaming machine;
draws, throws, declares or exhibits expressly or otherwise the winner or winning number ticket, lot, figure, design, symbol or other result of any public lottery;
writes, prints or publishes, or causes to be written, printed or published, any lottery ticket or list of prizes or any announcement of the result of a public lottery or any announcement or riddle relating to a public lottery;
announces, publishes or causes to be announced or published, either orally or by means of any print, writing, design, sign or otherwise, that any place is opened, kept or used as a common gaming house, or in any other manner invites or solicits any person to commit a breach of section 6 or 9; or
conducts in or through any newspaper or any other periodical publication, or in connection with any trade or business or the sale of any article to the public —
any competition in which prizes are offered for forecasts of the result either of a future event or of a past event the result of which is not yet ascertained or not yet generally known; or
any other competition, success in which does not depend to a substantial degree upon the exercise of skill, is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine of not less than
$5,000 and not exceeding $50,000, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3
years or both.
Offences relating to dealing with gaming machines [S 20/2008]
Terms defined in s 2
common gaming house
Defined · s 2“common gaming house” includes — (a) any place kept or used for gaming, to which the public or any class of the public has or may have access; (b) any place kept for habitual gaming, whether the public or any class of the public has or may have access to it or not; (c) any place kept or used for the purpose of a public lottery; (d) any place (including a place which is owned, occupied, possessed, kept, used or maintained by any society or any other organisation, body or group of persons, whether or not that society, organisation, body or group is established by or under any written law) — (i) where four or more persons are gaming; (ii) where any game specified in the Schedule is being played; or (iii) where gaming is carried out and for which payment is made by any person to any society, organisation, body or group of persons or any other person as consideration for permitting gaming in such place;
gaming
Defined · s 2“gaming” means playing any game of chance or of mixed chance and skill for money or money’s worth and includes — (a) playing any game specified in the Schedule; and (b) playing or operating any gaming machine;
lottery ticket
Defined · s 2“lottery ticket” includes any paper, figure, writing, symbol or other article whatsoever which either expressly or tacitly entitles or purports to entitle the holder or any other person to receive any money or money’s worth on the happening of any event or contingency connected with any public lottery;
place
Defined · s 2“place” means any house, office, room or building and any place or spot whether open or enclosed and includes a ship, boat or other vessel whether afloat or not and any vehicle;
public lottery
Defined · s 2“public lottery” means a lottery to which the public or any class of the public has or may have access and every lottery is deemed, until the contrary be proved, to be a public lottery;