## Facts

- The Economic Opportunity Commission of Nassau County, Inc. (EOC) conducted a fundraising raffle for its Martin Luther King Scholarship Fund, offering a 1986 Chevrolet Camaro as the prize.
- Ray Harris bought five raffle tickets for $2 each at his pharmacy and stamped the tickets with the name of his corporation, B.W. Harris, Inc.
- The winning ticket was drawn while Harris was away, and he later attempted to claim the prize on the corporation’s behalf.
- Before the prize was delivered, EOC returned the Camaro to the dealer for a refund and placed the proceeds into the scholarship fund.
- The parties disputed whether Harris’s attempt to claim the prize was timely, and EOC lacked documentation establishing when the car was returned.
- Harris and B.W. Harris, Inc. sued for delivery of the Camaro or damages equal to its value; EOC asserted the raffle was an illegal lottery and unenforceable.

## Issues

1. Whether the raffle constituted an illegal lottery under New York law, rendering the prize agreement void and unenforceable.
2. If the raffle was illegal, whether the ticket purchaser could recover the full value of the prize (or other expectancy damages) or was limited to a statutory recovery measured by the wager.
3. Whether characterizing the payment as a charitable contribution, rather than a wager, changed the illegality and remedy analysis.

## Decision

- The Appellate Division held the raffle was an illegal lottery and therefore void and unenforceable.
- The court declined to enforce the raffle by ordering delivery of the car or awarding damages equal to its value.
- The court limited the plaintiff’s recovery to twice the amount paid for the tickets ($20), leaving intact the reduction from the jury’s $15,000 award.

## Legal Principles

- A transaction meeting the elements of consideration, chance, and prize is a lottery; if not authorized by statute, it is illegal.
- Courts will not enforce illegal lottery or gambling agreements by granting the benefit of the bargain.
- Where relief is available to a participant in an illegal wagering transaction, recovery may be limited to a statutory measure such as twice the amount of the wager, rather than expectancy damages.
- A charitable purpose does not legalize an otherwise prohibited lottery that falls outside statutory exceptions or exceeds statutory prize limits.

## Conclusion

The court treated the unauthorized charitable raffle as an illegal lottery, refused to award the Camaro or its value, and limited recovery to the statutory remedy of twice the $10 paid for tickets.


Harris v. Econ. Opportunity Comm’n of Nassau Cnty., Inc., 575 N.Y.S.2d 672 (App. Div. 2d Dep’t 1991)