Last week a Federal Court in Washington dismissed a lawsuit which the plaintiff sued under the guise that social gambling was gambling under state law, and is therefore illegal.
The case was dismissed on the guise that virtual chips have no value and that because the plaintiff was not risking anything of value the activity was not gambling. The plaintiff's attorneys had previously argued that virtual chips can be sold on a secondary market and therefore did have some sort of value.
A report by the National Law Review on the case read: "The Court noted that the games are free to play and there is never a possibility of receiving real cash or merchandise, and that extended gameplay cannot result in any gain to the user aside from the amusement that accompanies it."