It remains in effect against Resorts and MGM because of more specific allegations against them that were made in the suit. Last month, a judge dismissed the Trump casinos, the Tropicana, Showboat and Bally’s from the lawsuit on technical grounds, but allowed Taveras to re-file the suit against them by April if she specifies in greater detail what she alleges they did wrong. The casinos either declined comment for this story, or did not respond to repeated requests for comment. The casinos deny any wrongdoing, claiming in court papers that Taveras brought her problems on herself. District Court in New Jersey, names Resorts Atlantic City, Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, the Tropicana Casino Resort, the Showboat Casino Hotel, Bally’s Atlantic City, as well as the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

She was disbarred last June, and faces criminal charges stemming from those actions, but is trying to work out restitution agreements in order to avoid a prison term. In interviews with The Associated Press, Taveras admitted she dipped into escrow accounts she maintained for clients to finance her gambling habit.

She said she even considered swerving into oncoming traffic to kill herself. She lost her law practice, her apartment, her parents’ home, and still owes the IRS $58,000. “It’s like crack, only gambling is worse than crack because it’s mental,” said Taveras, 37, a Queens, N.Y. Now she’s chasing the longest of long shots: a $20 million racketeering lawsuit against six Atlantic City casinos, and one in Las Vegas, claiming they had a duty to notice her compulsive gambling problem and cut her off.Įxperts say her case will be difficult to prove, but it provides an unusually detailed window into the life of a problem gambler. She says her total losses amounted to nearly $1 million. She started out as an ambitious lawyer and TV commentator who got to know the staff in Atlantic City casinos, and soon limousines were whisking her to the resort for the high-roller treatment.Īrelia Margarita Taveras says she was even allowed to bring her dog, Sasha, to the blackjack tables, sitting in her purse.īut her gambling spun out of control: She said she would go days at a time at the tables, not eating or sleeping, brushing her teeth with disposable wipes so she didn’t have to leave the table, and sometimes passing out.

Compulsive gambling lawsuit casino