Commonwealth Casino Commission Chairman Edward C. Deleon Guerrero, left, hands a copy of a document to Vice Chairman Ralph S. Demapan during a meeting in Gualo Rai last week.
IMPERIAL Pacific International has appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s ruling that reversed the District Court for the NMI’s decision to refer IPI’s casino-license revocation case to arbitration.
According to the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. Supreme Court, IPI’s petition for a writ of certiorari was filed on Nov. 6, 2023 and placed on the docket on Nov. 16, 2023 as No. 23-522. The due date for a brief in opposition is Monday, Dec. 18, 2023.
A writ of certiorari is a legal order issued by a higher court, typically an appellate court, to review the decision of a lower court.
Meanwhile, the Commonwealth Casino Commission wants IPI to offer a payment plan that can meet all its obligations to the CNMI government.
The 30-day “reasonable timeline” that the commission gave IPI to pay its outstanding obligations began on Nov. 30, 2023. If the beleaguered casino investor is unable to make payment, the commission recommended a “settlement offer acceptable to the Commonwealth.”
Aside from the $62 million in annual exclusive casino license fee for 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 due to the central government, the commission is also demanding the payment of $17.62 million in regulatory fee due to the commission, plus fines and penalties, for a total of $79.63 million.
In an interview on Thursday, CCC Chairman Edward C. Deleon Guerrero said they can move ahead with the revocation hearing without waiting for the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision.
Payment plan
In a letter to IPI Director How Yo Chi on Friday, Deleon Guerrero said
the commission “is willing to entertain reasonable settlement offers” as long as IPI pays up front the $15.5 million casino license fee and the $3.15 million regulatory fee for 2023. But he said the entire amount currently owed by IPI to the CNMI government cannot be forgiven.
“There are other issues previously discussed that will also need to be included in the Settlement Agreement including the lifting of casino gaming suspension, dismissal of pending actions, construction assurance, waiver of exclusivity, support for amendments to the casino license agreement and existing gaming statutes, and related matters,” Deleon Guerrero told Chi.
Deleon Guerrero said if Chi believes “that IPI will not be able to perform and make good on its payment obligations, then IPI has the duty to immediately submit a proposal to the Commission and identify how you plan to meet your financial obligations.”
Deleon Guerrero said if IPI pays $18.67 million in casino license and regulatory fees, “we can immediately start working on the settlement agreement before the next commission’s meeting” on Dec. 28, 2023, two days before the CCC’s 30-day deadline.
“Time is of the essence and IPI must act now,” Deleon Guerrero told Chi.
Asked for comment, Chi said, “We are still working on a response” to Deleon Guerrero’s letter.
The operation of IPI’s casino has been suspended since March 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic, and the construction of IPI’s hotel-casino has yet to resume. On April 23, 2021, its casino license was suspended by the CCC “pending settlement of certain outstanding fees associated with the license.”
