Four-time WSOP bracelet winner Mike “The Mouth” Matusow is one of the latest litigants to join a pending class-action lawsuit against online payment processor PayPal. Matusow made his announcement on Twitter last week, describing the California-based company as “straight criminals.”
Matusow is one of more than 100 people who have joined the class action fronted by attorney Eric Bensomachan, and which is slated to be filed in the coming weeks.
The lawsuit began when Chris Moneymaker decided to fight PayPal after the global payment processor seized more than $12,000 connected to a private fantasy football league he runs, which PayPal claimed violated their anti-gambling policies.
After a public outcry in support of Moneymaker, PayPal refunded his money, effectively removing him from the lawsuit. Nonetheless, the planned class action continues to gather steam as others step forward to accuse PayPal of illegally seizing funds from frozen accounts.
Matusow takes over where Moneymaker leaves off
Matusow has provided no details about how he is a PayPal victim, though he has publicly proclaimed he joined the lawsuit, and has encouraged others to take part.
@Cmoneymaker was right! PayPal are straight criminals. I just hung up with @Bensamochan and I'm in on the class action against PayPal!
— Mike Matusow (@themouthmatusow) July 12, 2021
If you've had money stolen from PayPay hit up @Bensamochan or info@eblawfirm.us
— Mike Matusow (@themouthmatusow) July 12, 2021
PayPal enacted stringent anti-gambling policies shortly after the 2006 passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). However, the lawsuit isn’t likely to focus on whether PayPal can ban customers who have used the site to send money to and from gambling websites or between private gamblers. Instead, the lawsuit will focus on whether PayPal can seize the money within these accounts as a form of damages.
More than 100 possible plaintiffs
According to Bensamochan, interest in joining the lawsuit continues to grow, and the list of likely plaintiffs has topped the century mark. Bensamochan told CardsChat News that his firm has “received over a hundred inquires from people in all walks of life and in all parts of the world who have had funds seized by PayPal. We will not waiver and intend to seek justice for all those who have been victimized by this.”
Bensamochan is becoming a familiar name to followers of legal news connected to poker and gambling. Before taking on this matter, Bensamochan successfully represented Todd Witteles against the defamation claims filed by alleged poker cheat Mike Postle, who sought $330 million from a dozen different defendants.
Instead, Bensamochan won Witteles a $27,000 judgment against Postle in the process of having Postle’s claims dismissed.
