Washington court has granted a preliminary injunction against Kalshi, barring the prediction market operator from offering sports-related event contracts in the state
Washington has become the latest state to temporarily halt Kalshi from offering its sports-event contracts to residents.
In a ruling Monday, King County Superior Court Judge John McHale argued that Kalshi was providing an illegal gambling platform for Washington consumers.
“[It] offers illegal gambling activities to Washington consumers and solicits bets from Washington consumers on its platform” Judge McHale wrote in his decision. “The public interests at stake and potential harm to consumers in the continued operation of Kalshi’s online gambling activities in the State of Washington outweigh harm to Kalshi.”
The injunction does not take effect before August 5, and the court has asked both parties to provide further evidence by August 3.
The case turns on whether Kalshi’s sports-event contracts are governed solely by the federal Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) or are subject to state gambling laws.
Washington argued that the contracts violated state law, while Kalshi argued that federal law overruled state regulation.
“This victory is the first step toward holding Kalshi accountable for their brazen violations of Washington law,” said Washington Attorney General Nick Brown. “Kalshi padded their pockets as they promoted illegal betting on sports, elections, the total number of measles cases this year, what will witnesses say during a child trafficking hearing, and even natural disasters.”
Responding to the decision, a Kalshi spokesperson said states lacked jurisdiction to regulate prediction markets and expressed disappointment with the ruling, citing other court decisions that supported the company’s position.
The injunction in Washington is only the latest in a series of legal setbacks for Kalshi. A Michigan judge issued a temporary restraining order against the company last month, and earlier in July, a New York judge declined Kalshi’s request to stop the state from enforcing its gambling laws.
Separately, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a lawsuit against New York in April, arguing that federal law gives the agency exclusive authority over prediction markets.