Michigan judge orders Kalshi to halt sports contracts for 14 days
Judge Rosemarie Aquilina issued a temporary restraining order on June 29 barring Kalshi from offering sports event contracts in Michigan for 14 days, citing potential harm to young users and state gaming law concerns. Attorney General Dana Nessel had accused the platform of breaching state law. The order takes effect immediately while broader legal proceedings continue. Kalshi faces parallel state-level challenges in multiple jurisdictions.
The sports-only blackout forces Kalshi to geofence Michigan wagers immediately, shrinking revenue from a state where it had been active. Judge Aquilina's willingness to enjoin a CFTC-registered platform before any merits ruling gives other state attorneys general a faster playbook than waiting for federal preemption.
Kalshi is already defending parallel actions in Illinois, Minnesota, Kentucky, New Mexico, and Massachusetts; each new front demands separate legal budgets and product restrictions. The 14-day window is short, but a second state copying Michigan's pre-merits injunction would confirm that state courts can outpace federal appeals. Platforms now face a patchwork survival test: afford every fight simultaneously or retreat market by market.