Michigan judge denies Polymarket, Robinhood injunction, clears state enforcement path
U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney in Michigan denied preliminary injunction requests from Polymarket and Robinhood on June 17, 2026, declining to block state enforcement actions against their sports event contracts. The ruling from the Western District of Michigan found Polymarket failed to prove irreparable harm and held that sports-related prediction market wagers do not fall under CFTC purview, clearing the path for Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel to pursue gambling enforcement. Both platforms had argued their contracts qualify as swaps under the Commodity Exchange Act. The decision pushes the dispute to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and marks another setback for CFTC-registered prediction market platforms navigating state-level gambling laws.
Polymarket and Robinhood must now defend against Michigan gambling enforcement without the shield of federal preemption, forcing both platforms to choose between geofencing the state or risking contempt while their appeal proceeds. The ruling undermines the core legal strategy that CFTC registration immunizes platforms from state gambling law.