The fine print on promotion advertisements always says "Void Where
Prohibited".  How do I find out if the contest or promotion advertised
is prohibited in my area?  In general, is there a way to figure out
what sorts of promotions are prohibited?

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Request for Question Clarification by hummer-ga on 03 Dec 2002 13:03 PST

Hi lexi,

It would help greatly if you let us know what State/Province you are in.

Thanks,
hummer

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Clarification of Question by lexi-ga on 03 Dec 2002 14:00 PST

I'm in California, but I was hoping something more general existed too.

lexi-ga,

This is one of those questions I have often wondered, but never looked
into - until now!

There's a good explanation of the need for and use of the 'Void Where
Prohibited' clause at HowStuffWorks.com (the question relates both
generally, and specifically to the asker's home state of Rhode
Island.)
http://www.howstuffworks.com/question541.htm

Office.com has a great article called "Plan a Successful, Legal
Sweepstakes -
Advertising law expert D. Reed Freeman explains the finer points of
the fine print." It goes into the difference between lotteries,
sweepstakes/games of chance, and games of skill, and explains some of
the reasons for including various legal disclaimers in the rules for
each. http://www.office.com/pyb_legalsweepstakes.htm

Here's a similar, but more detailed article from the web page of Arent
Fox Attorneys at Law.
http://www.arentfox.com/quickGuide/businessLines/sweeps/contestsSweepstakes/sweepsRelatedArticles/sweep/sweep.html

Search4Contests.com offers an general overview of state contest law
(with some specific states listed.)
http://www.search4contests.com/advice.phtml

As far as a compilation of state contest law, the best I found was a
post on a UC Davis Law Library board asking the same question, and
respondents referred the asker to several books that compile state
lottery and contest laws. 
(http://legalminds.lp.findlaw.com/list/law-lib/msg05087.html)
I have listed them here, as well as online resources for purchase
where applicable, but you will likely be most successful at your local
library.

Here's the list:
- Promotion Marketing Law (available @
http://www.pmalink.org/resources/shopping/publications.asp#7, but it
only appears to be available to members of the Promotion Marketing
Association.)
- Advertising Compliance Handbook, by Kenneth A. Plevan, Miriam L.
Siroky (available through Amazon.com @
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0872240258/002-0885872-6280026?vi=glance#product-details)
- Advertising the New Media Age (could not find an online purchase
venue)
- National Survey of State Laws 2d, (chapter 37) Ed. Richar A.Leiter,
Gale, 1997.
(I could not find a source for this one, but did find it on a
Vanderbilt University Alyne Queener Massey Law Library Research Guide
page.  You might find other helpful books there as well. 
http://law.vanderbilt.edu/library/research/surveys.html )

To learn more about lottery and contest law in a given state or area,
call that state's Lottery and/or Gaming Commission. (If you are
looking for something specific, I'm happy to help!)

I hope this answers your question... please feel free to post a
Request for Clarification if I can be of further assistance, and
thanks again for the question!

Best,
Rebeccam-ga

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Clarification of Answer by rebeccam-ga on 03 Dec 2002 15:45 PST

I nearly forgot to include my search strategy!

The searches that yielded helpful results were:

"void where prohibited" state law
( ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22void+where+prohibited%22+state+law
)

"void where prohibited" various states
( ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22void+where+prohibited%22+various+states
)

state contest law
( ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=state+contest+law
)

state gaming laws
( ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=state+gaming+laws
)

state lottery commissions
( ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=state+lottery+commissions
)

state contest laws
( ://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=state+contest+laws
)

I also searched for the books included in the answer.