BANGOR – A Maine Superior Court justice is scheduled to hear arguments today on the motion filed Wednesday by CasinosNo! to halt the Maine Harness Racing Commission’s decision to issue a conditional license to Bangor Historic Track.

Unless the stay is granted, the license would become effective Saturday.

CasinosNo!, which engineered the defeat of November’s referendum to build an Indian-run casino in Sanford, filed two motions in Penobscot County Superior Court late Wednesday. In addition to a stay, the organization’s attorneys are asking a judge to reverse the commission’s denial of its petition for intervenor status.

The Penobscot Nation and the Passamoquoddy Tribe on Tuesday appealed the commission’s denial of their petition to intervene. The tribes filed a motion to delay the commission vote on issuing a conditional license, but withdrew it after the commission voted late Tuesday morning. The tribes want to operate the racino.

Penobscot County Superior Court Justice Andrew Mead granted a request by CasinosNo! for an expedited hearing. A hearing on the tribes’ appeal has not been scheduled.

Ordinarily, staff in the Maine Attorney General’s Office would represent a state agency such as the Harness Racing Commission in court. However, Attorney General Stephen Rowe on Thursday informed the commission that it would have to obtain outside council, to be approved by Rowe, to represent the commissioners on appeals of its decisions.

“My decision is based on two factors,” wrote Rowe in a letter addressed to commission Chairman George McHale. “First, members of the Office of the Attorney General have previously provided advice to the commission’s staff regarding the proper course of action that should be taken by the commission. The commission, though, has not followed this advice. In the particular circumstances of these legal actions, it would not be appropriate for this office to defend actions taken by the commission that were contrary to our advice.”

The Attorney General’s Office advised the commission earlier this month that the tribes did have intervenor status in the licensing process.

In his letter to the commission, Rowe added that constitutional issues regarding the installation of slot machines at the raceway would have to be reviewed by his office. “It is important that this office retain its autonomy to offer its opinions to the court on these issues,” he wrote.

McHale said Thursday night that Rowe made the “proper decision” in advising the commission to seek outside counsel. The racing commission chairman said that it would be hiring an attorney “in the next few days.”

According to McHale, attorneys’ fees would be paid out of the commission’s budget. He added that the decision did not come as a surprise to commissioners.