Circle K Manager's $12.8M Lottery Battle Raises Ownership Questions 2026

Circle K Lottery Dispute: Employee Claims Retaliatory Termination Over $12.8M Ticket

A decade-long employment relationship at a Scottsdale, Arizona Circle K location has escalated into a high-stakes legal battle over lottery ticket ownership, with former manager Robert Gawlitza asserting that his termination was retaliatory and that he rightfully purchased a winning $12.8 million ticket in compliance with store procedures.

Robert Gawlitza worked as store manager for Circle K (a Couche-Tard subsidiary) in Scottsdale for 20 years. According to Gawlitza's legal filing, he purchased a lottery ticket at his store location in accordance with established company policy permitting employees to purchase lottery products during work hours.

The ticket subsequently won $12.8 million in the Arizona Lottery. Circle K then terminated Gawlitza and, through corporate counsel, initiated proceedings claiming the company owns the ticket based on the premise that it was purchased on company property using company resources during work time.

What This Means

This case raises complex questions about retail employee rights, employer property claims, and the intersection of gambling regulation with labour law. If Circle K's written policies permitted employee lottery purchases, courts may determine the policy constitutes a binding employment agreement protecting Gawlitza's right to keep ticket proceeds.

The timing of Gawlitza's termination — immediately following the winning ticket claim — will be central to the retaliatory dismissal analysis. Courts generally disfavour terminations that appear designed to deprive employees of earned benefits or contractual rights. The case will likely turn on the exact language of Circle K's employee conduct policies and whether they created reasonable expectations about ticket ownership.