Casino Dress Codes Spotlighted After Model Stopped at Australian Gaming Floor

Posted on: December 29, 2021, 01:42h. 

Last updated on: December 29, 2021, 02:40h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More

Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

OnlyFans model Mikaela Testa was prevented this month from entering an Australian casino, allegedly because of her racy outfit. After making some quick adjustments, she was allowed onto the gaming floor.

But overall, dress codes at gaming properties in recent years are slipping away, according to Robert Jarvis, a law professor at Florida’s Nova Southeastern University’s Shepard College of Law, as told to Casino.org.

With more people dressing more casually, are they willing to cut out an increasing segment of patrons by insisting on a strict dress code?” Jarvis questioned.  “The answer, resoundingly, has been to drop standards to keep patrons coming through the doors.”

He says this is true even in Monte Carlo casinos. “James Bond may still wear a tux when playing in them, but no one else does,” Jarvis added.

After the incident, Testa, 21, posted comments on TikTok. She revealed the outfit was described by security staff as “inappropriate.” The incident likely took place at The Star Sydney, according to the Daily Mail Australia.

“We went to the casino to play some roulette and I got stopped at the entry saying that my outfit’s inappropriate so I had to tie my f***ing skirt up with a hair tie,” she said on the social media site. “It looked so rat s*** but whatever.”

When asked about the recent incident, Jarvis said that generally, casinos can set and enforce dress codes. So, visitors must find out before entering what is and is not allowed and dress accordingly, Jarvis adds.

“Ms. Testa could have saved herself a great deal of grief if she had simply called ahead,” Jarvis continued. “Of course, … Ms. Testa has a history of causing incidents by wearing provocative clothing, and uses such incidents to increase the number of followers she has on social media.” She has over 1 million followers on Instagram.

Law Explained

Jarvis also provided some general guidelines for casinos as far as dress codes. Casinos must clearly state and conspicuously post dress codes. They can be on signs in the casino and on web sites.

Under US law, a private business can enforce a dress code if it is not applied in a discriminatory fashion, Jarvis said. For instance, seven Hasidic-Jewish-owned businesses in Brooklyn, N.Y. were sued in 2013 after preventing alleged immodestly dressed women from entering the venues. The businesses later posted signs saying, “Modest dress appreciated.”  Store owners later agreed to let everyone in no matter how they dressed.

Las Vegas Casinos Not Likely to Enforce Dress Codes

Specifically on casinos, the Rev. Richard McGowan, a finance professor at Boston College and authority on gambling trends, told Casino.org that casinos are “trying to sell themselves as legitimate entertainment.

They also would like to be attractive to a broader segment of the population,” McGowan said. “So, I imagine that the person with the racy outfit would disturb the image that the casino operator was trying to convey.”

He expects some regional casinos in the US might try to enforce a dress code. But the same may not happen in Las Vegas.