Chavdar Vasilev is a journalist covering the casino and sports betting market sectors for CasinoBeats. He joined CasinoBeats in May 2025 and reports on industry-shaping stories across the US and beyond, including legislative debates, market...
Read Full BioIn the newest turn of events in the legal saga between Aristocrat Technologies (Aristocrat) and Light & Wonder (L&W), a Nevada federal judge ordered the latter to hand over key mathematical models tied to certain “hold and spin” games released since 2021.
The decision reverses a June 2025 ruling that sided with L&W and denied Aristocrat access to those materials. It marks a decisive procedural victory for the Australian gaming giant.
The October 17 Ruling
On October 17, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada granted Aristocrat’s renewed motion to compel discovery of Light & Wonder’s internal math models for certain “hold-and-spin” slot games. That’s when Emma Charles – whose work is at the core of the lawsuit – joined the company.
The ruling broadens discovery to include the proprietary mathematical frameworks behind L&W’s titles, such as Dragon Train and Jewel of the Dragon, which Aristocrat alleges its rival built using misappropriated trade secrets.
In a news release, Light & Wonder said it was “disappointed with the Court’s ruling.” Still, it maintained confidence that “no evidence of Aristocrat math [is] being used in any commercially released games other than Dragon Train and Jewel of the Dragon.”
The court has now set key deadlines. The fact discovery closes December 15, 2025, followed by expert discovery on March 16, 2026. Both sides will likely enter an intensive phase of technical review and depositions in preparation for a trial in 2026.
Sensitive Data at the Center of the Fight
Court filings reveal that in a September 19 response, L&W’s attorneys from Susman Godfrey LLP and Campbell & Williams supported Aristocrat’s earlier motion to file certain materials under seal.
They emphasized that the redacted sections of the response contained “non-public details relating to the development and math of several L&W games, including unreleased games and internal processes for game development.”
The filing warned that unprotected disclosure could inflict “economic or competitive injury.” It argued that even “a glimpse” of the company’s internal algorithms could enable competitors “to position themselves to undercut L&W.” It cited previous rulings in Rimini Street v. Oracle and Apple v. Samsung to justify sealing those details from public view.
That sensitive information (L&W internal math models) is what the court ordered disclosed to Aristocrat on October 17. The reversal underscores the court’s preference for transparency in discovery over corporate secrecy in this high-stakes intellectual property fight.
Reversal to Light & Wonder’s Summer Win
The latest ruling is a sharp contrast to a June ruling, when the same Nevada court sided with L&W. Then, it stated that L&W wasn’t obligated to disclose the math models for all the games that Aristocrat was seeking. It asked Aristocrat to specify which trade secrets it wanted to protect under the litigation.
Observers viewed the June ruling as a short-term victory for L&W. It allowed the company to protect its internal math and bought it time to prepare a defense. The market responded positively, with L&W shares rising about 10 percent after the ruling and 12 percent for the week.
Now, the pendulum has swung. The October 17 decision signaled the court’s willingness to allow Aristocrat a deeper look into the disputed sensitive information as it refines its trade-secret claims.
Background to the Dispute
In 2024, Aristocrat filed a lawsuit against L&W. It alleged that its rival’s popular slot Dragon Train used math algorithms first developed for Aristocrat’s globally successful Dragon Link and Lightning Link slot franchises.
Central to the dispute is Charles, a game designer who joined L&W in 2021 and was on the development team of Dragon Train. Aristocrat claims that Charles took and reused confidential data concerning payout structures and feature probabilities. It claims that amounts to trade-secret theft and unfair competition.
In September 2024, the court granted a preliminary injunction to Aristocrat. The decision halted US sales and marketing of Dragon Train pending trial, after the court found Aristocrat was likely to succeed on the merits.
Meanwhile, L&W withdrew Dragon Train. Additionally, in April 2025, it announced that it would voluntarily cease commercializing the Jewel of the Dragon slot machines. The decision was a result of a second amendment complaint by Aristocrat.
A full trial will likely commence sometime in 2026 unless the companies settle earlier.
