Several Ultimate Bet Scandal Victims Seek Damages

January 18th, 2012 | 11:57 am

Eight high-stakes poker pros who were victims of the Ultimate Bet superuser scandal have filed a lawsuit in an attempt to recover their losses and additional damages.

By Matt Kaufman, Rakeback.com Poker News Editor

Between roughly 2004 and 2008, a security hole in Ultimate Bet's software made it possible for system administrators to view the hole cards of other players on the site. Unfortunately, this hole was abused. Russ Hamilton, and perhaps others, sat at high-stakes tables and viewed their opponents' cards while playing.

In total, 23 accounts using 117 user names were found to have scammed several high-stakes players of at least $22 million.

In the years following the incidents, Ultimate Bet (UB) made payments to many cheated players in an attempt to make them whole. Many players believe, however, that the amount they received is far less than what they are rightfully owed.

Today

Although several years have passed since the "superuser" scandal, eight players who were significantly affected and believe they never received the damages they are entitled to have filed a lawsuit against Excapsa Software, Inc. (the company that ran and was responsible for UB during the scandal) and 10 John Does related to the company.

The eight plaintiffs are all high-stakes poker pros, and they most notably include Brad "Yukon Brad" Booth, Greg "Captain Zeebo" Lavery, and Dustin "Neverwin" Woolf. The group claims that they were cheated of roughly $2 million, and they are seeking total damages of no less than $10 million in order to cover actual losses, lost potential income, and punitive damages.

The majority of the complaint is related to the actual details of the scandal and showing how the plaintiffs were negatively affected by it. There are several holes in the story, including exact amounts owed and if any individuals besides Russ Hamilton are also responsible. The plaintiffs hope to fill those holes during the discovery phase of the lawsuit.

This suit is NOT a class action, and therefore the eight plaintiffs are exclusively representing themselves in their claims; they do not represent the collective group of players who were affected by the scandal.

Rakeback.com will follow this story closely and make sure to update you as any developments occur.