Isn't is illegal to pay money for picking teams?
Isn't is illegal to pay money for picking teams?
It could be! If your intent is to PAY based on outcome of games on which people wager money, or anything of value, and if you keep a portion of the proceeds, then that to me sounds like gambling. However, I'm no attorney and our terms of service require that you not use jPickem for anything that's not legal. That said, here's our opinion:
Generally whether an office pool is legal or not depends upon the state you are in, so do a little research. In most cases, if you're just playing for bragging rights, it's legal. Only when money is involved does the legality of the pool become an issue. Again, depending on the state, whether or not all the money put into the pool is paid out, or whether a cut is taken can determine the legality. The amount of money put into the pool will affect whether authorities care. A high stakes pool will definitely garner more attention and more likely be reported (by perhaps a disgruntled member of the pool) than a pool among friends with low per person entry fees.
ALSO IMPORTANT: Be aware of your employer's policy on running office pools. Some companies forbid them, others look the other way, and still others encourage them. If you are going to do any of this on the employer's time or resources, find out the company policy before you login from the office. A safer alternative is always to do your picking at home and don't use company email when you sign-up.
Common sense rules. Do it in an unobtrusive manner and we believe most companies won't care.
PS. We've seen MANY groups running pools via CBS Sportsline for many years. People within their system openly discuss payments and payouts. What's always clear is that CBS does nothing to facilitate the transactions. (they don't help collect or pay) My conclusion is that if this activity were illegal, the CBS attorneys would shut down fee-based groups quickly.
If there are any attorneys out there, we welcome your input on this topic.