Overview
- Ohio’s Chief Judge Sarah D. Morrison denied Kalshi’s preliminary injunction, finding the company had not shown its sports-event contracts are governed by the Commodity Exchange Act and allowing state enforcement to continue.
- Michigan’s Judge Paul L. Maloney refused Polymarket’s request for a temporary restraining order, concluding the platform had not shown likely success or imminent irreparable harm as the case proceeds.
- The Michigan decision made it at least the third federal court to preliminarily determine that sports-event contracts are not swaps subject to exclusive CFTC jurisdiction.
- In contrast, a Tennessee federal court on Feb. 19 granted Kalshi a preliminary injunction, indicating a likelihood that the contracts qualify as swaps and temporarily blocking state enforcement there.
- The CFTC has recently asserted it will defend federal oversight and has filed amicus briefs, as litigants move toward further briefing and appeals that sustain legal and operational uncertainty for platforms and states.