Swedish company Evolution AB (publ) and its affiliates obtained the dismissal of claims brought by the Los Angeles City Attorney alleging violations of California’s Unfair Competition Law based on Evolution’s games made available on the Stake.us online entertainment platform. The action sought at least $1.44 billion for losses by Californians, as well as at least $987 million in civil penalties.
In its August 21 ruling, the Superior Court of Los Angeles County granted the Evolution defendants’ motion to quash, agreeing that the court lacked personal jurisdiction over them.
Evolution AB, headquartered and incorporated in Sweden, is the parent of companies that produce gaming software and live casino games. In 2025, an Evolution subsidiary entered into an agreement with Sweepsteaks Ltd., which operates Stake.us, to license Evolution games for use on the platform. The lawsuit claimed that Sweepsteaks and its suppliers of gaming products and services, including the Evolution group, offered illegal online gambling in violation of California law.
The court held that the City Attorney had not shown California-directed conduct by any Evolution defendant. None of Evolution’s products was directed to California specifically and Sweepsteaks handled all customer relationships and payments on the Stake.us platform. The court denied the City Attorney’s request for jurisdictional discovery as lacking merit.
Last year, S&C obtained dismissal of a putative securities fraud class action against Evolution AB and its senior executives, also on jurisdictional grounds.
The S&C team representing Evolution AB and its affiliates includes Robert Giuffra Jr., David Rein (who argued the motion), Diane McGimsey, Sverker Hogberg, Gulliver Brady, Andrew Hamilton and Parnaz Hojjati.