NJ court orders NCPG to cease using 1-800-GAMBLER helpline

The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) has been ordered by a New Jersey Superior Court judge to stop using the 1-800-GAMBLER phone number and mark anywhere in the U.S. by Sept. 29.

Judge Douglas H. Hurd determined on Mondaythat the non-profit Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (CCGNJ) has the sole right to run the national problem gambling helpline, as it did from the resource’s initial launch in 1983 until 2022. The CCGNJ licensed it to the NCPG in 2022 in a three-year agreement that expired May 31, 2025.

NCPG tried to extend agreement past original deal terms

The NCPG alleged in court filings that it attempted to activate an option to extend that deal and asserted that the two councils’ contract mandated that the dispute be resolved through arbitration. It filed for a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the CCGNJ to prevent the hotline from being shut down until the dispute was resolved in court, and was granted a TRO in July, pending Monday’s hearing.

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