107 A.D.2d 952 | N.Y. App. Div. | 1985
— Appeal from an order of the Supreme Court at Special Term (Cerrito, J.), entered October 31, 1983 in Albany County, which granted defendant’s motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint.
Not every purchaser of a winning Lotto ticket becomes an instant millionaire. In fact, effective March 26, 1981, the relevant official rules and regulations were amended to provide that when no winning ticket has been purchased in a given week, an alternate first prize would be awarded (former 21 NYCRR 2817.6 [c] [1] [repealed Jan. 7, 1983]). Such alternate first prize would consist of 20% of the first prize moneys derived from that week’s winning pool and be payable to the purchaser(s) of a valid ticket(s) containing any five of the six winning numbers plus the supplementary number. If more than one such ticket was presented, the alternate first prize would be divided equally between the holders of such tickets.
The gravamen of this case is whether the regulations establishing the amount of the prize awarded were binding on plaintiff, or whether, as plaintiff urges, common-law principles of tortious conduct allow recovery premised on defendant’s misrepresentations. In essence, plaintiff contends that he was unaware of the regulations and could rely upon defendant’s representations set forth on the bet slip and the “Lotto News” that one half of the first prize moneys would constitute the alternate first prize. This contention necessitates a myopic reading of the very documents upon which plaintiff relies. Both the on-line ticket (receipt) and the bet slip indicate that players are bound by the rules and regulations of the State Lottery (see Zapata v Quinn, 564 F Supp 23, affd 707 F2d 691). The “Lotto News” poster indicated that multiple winners must share $696,302, or the first prize moneys derived from that week’s winning pool, and not the actual first prize jackpot, as established by the lottery rules. Clearly then, plaintiff was on notice that the pertinent lottery rules and regulations were determinative of the prize awarded.
Order affirmed, without costs. Kane, J. P., Main, Casey and Weiss, JJ., concur.