Kalshi v. New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement: Allegations, Court Orders and Status

On April 6, 2026 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled 2-1 that federal law blocks New Jersey from enforcing its gambling law against Kalshi's sports event contracts, and New Jersey has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review that ruling (No. 26-299).

The order under review is a preliminary injunction (D.N.J., April 28, 2025), not a final judgment. Kalshi's response to the petition is due December 7, 2026, and no money is at stake. The case concerns New Jersey only and does not decide Kalshi's position in any other state.

Dates from the district order, the Third Circuit opinion and the Supreme Court docket; the injunction is preliminary.

What this case is about

KalshiEX LLC v. Flaherty is a suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, No. 1:25-cv-02152-ESK-MJS, before Judge Edward S. Kiel. Its appeal is Third Circuit No. 25-1922 and its petition is Supreme Court No. 26-299. A complaint states one side's allegations; only the court's orders decide anything.

What Kalshi and New Jersey each argue

New Jersey's Division of Gaming Enforcement sent Kalshi a cease-and-desist letter on March 27, 2025, citing the state constitution's ban on betting on college sports; Kalshi says that federal law, not New Jersey law, governs its contracts. The state later extended the compliance date to April 30, 2025.

Kalshi sued in late March 2025. It claims preemption under the Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. 2(a)(1)(A), which gives the CFTC exclusive jurisdiction over swaps on designated contract markets, and under the Supremacy Clause (U.S. Const. art. VI). The dispute is one of the prediction market lawsuits we track.

The Commodity Exchange Act question: are sports event contracts swaps?

The case turns on one question: whether a contract on a sports outcome is a swap on a CFTC-designated contract market, which would place it under exclusive federal oversight.

The Third Circuit, at the preliminary-injunction stage, found that Kalshi has demonstrated a reasonable chance of success on its argument that federal law preempts New Jersey's enforcement. The Ninth Circuit (Nevada, August 28, 2026) and the Sixth Circuit (Ohio and Tennessee, September 25, 2026) said no in other states' cases. That is the swaps question and the circuit split, covered in the guide that asks are sports event contracts swaps.

Who is covered

No class exists, so nobody is covered or needs to join: the parties are Kalshi on one side and New Jersey officials on the other.

The defendants are Mary Jo Flaherty, Interim Director of the Division of Gaming Enforcement, the state's attorney general (the record names Matthew J. Platkin and Jennifer Davenport) and members of the Casino Control Commission.

The injunction protects Kalshi's sports contracts in New Jersey, and they remain available there under it. It is not a ruling for any other state.

Robinhood's own New Jersey suit (D.N.J. No. 1:25-cv-14723, filed August 19, 2025) is stayed behind this case. Every other matter involving the company is listed on the page for Kalshi lawsuits.

Is there a payout?

No payout exists in this case: it is a dispute between Kalshi and New Jersey regulators over whether state law may be enforced against Kalshi's sports contracts, with no class, no fund, no claim form and no claim deadline.

The record shows no damages and no fees. No claim form exists and this site never hosts one. Payouts on Kalshi's own contracts are a different subject and out of scope here.

What happens next

The next dated event is Kalshi's response to New Jersey's Supreme Court petition, due December 7, 2026. As read from the record, the injunction stands as the Third Circuit affirmed it.

The Supreme Court petition (No. 26-299) and the December 7, 2026 response date

New Jersey did not seek rehearing and petitioned the Supreme Court for certiorari on September 2, 2026; the petition was docketed on September 8, 2026 as No. 26-299. Paul Clement appears for Kalshi, and Sundeep Iyer of the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General for the petitioner.

Amicus briefs were filed from September 22 to October 8, 2026 by Ohio and 38 other states, 145 tribes, the NFL, the American Gaming Association, Gary Gensler and others.

The response date was extended and now stands at December 7, 2026. No distribution and no order had issued as of November 14, 2026, and the petition is tracked among the pending appeals and high court gambling cases.

Two companion petitions are due the same day. No. 26-338 is Robinhood v. Dreitzer, filed September 10, 2026, and No. 26-344 is NADEX (Crypto.com) v. Nevada, filed September 11, 2026.

What a grant or a denial would mean for the injunction

If the Supreme Court denies the petition, the Third Circuit's affirmance of the preliminary injunction stays as written; if it grants, briefing and argument follow before any decision.

We make no prediction either way. The injunction was preliminary, so the merits remain for the district court in both cases.

Either way, the Third Circuit's ruling binds only federal courts in its own circuit. The Ninth Circuit ruled against Kalshi on August 28, 2026 and the Sixth Circuit on September 25, 2026, so Kalshi's sports contracts face different court orders in different states.

Timeline

The dispute began with a letter on March 27, 2025 and reached the Supreme Court's docket on September 8, 2026.

Our sources differ on the day Kalshi filed its complaint, so we say only late March 2025 until the district docket settles it.

What the court has decided so far

Two courts have ruled on the merits of the preemption question in this case, both for Kalshi, and both at the preliminary-injunction stage. No court has entered a final judgment, and the Supreme Court has made no order.

The District of New Jersey injunction of April 28, 2025

On April 28, 2025 Judge Edward S. Kiel granted Kalshi a preliminary injunction against New Jersey's enforcement (2025 WL 1218313, D.N.J. No. 1:25-cv-02152).

The order followed the March 27 cease-and-desist letter and the state's extension of the compliance date to April 30, 2025.

It is a preliminary order that pauses enforcement while the case continues; it is not a final ruling on the merits. For how federal and state authority collide in such cases, see CFTC jurisdiction versus state gambling law.

The Third Circuit opinion of April 6, 2026 (2-1)

On April 6, 2026 the Third Circuit affirmed 2-1 (No. 25-1922, 172 F.4th 220): Judge Porter wrote for the majority and Judge Roth dissented. Chief Judge Chagares sat on the panel. The citation comes from a secondary source, and Judge Roth's dissenting reasoning is not in our record, so we do not describe it.

The court heard argument on September 10, 2025. Reviewing a preliminary injunction, it found that Kalshi "has demonstrated a reasonable chance of success" on its claim that federal law preempts New Jersey's enforcement, and left the final merits to later proceedings.

The decision affirmed a preliminary injunction, not a final judgment. It binds the federal courts in the Third Circuit as precedent but does not decide Ohio, Nevada or any state outside this case. As of October 30, 2026 the status is appealed; the next dated event is the December 7, 2026 response.

Documents and sources

Every date on this page comes from the district court order, the Third Circuit opinion and the Supreme Court docket, listed here.

• D.N.J. order of April 28, 2025, GovInfo, primary.
• Third Circuit opinion, No. 25-1922, April 6, 2026, primary.
• Supreme Court docket, No. 26-299, primary.
• Foley report, secondary, source of the 172 F.4th 220 citation.
• CourtListener search for 1:25-cv-02152, a search page, not a docket.

Related cases

The New Jersey ruling is one of several appellate decisions and filings on Kalshi's sports contracts.

The circuit split: other Kalshi appeals

Three circuits have ruled and two have heard argument.

Companion cases about New Jersey and Nevada

Robinhood's New Jersey suit is stayed behind this case, and the Nevada petitions are due the same day.

• Robinhood v. New Jersey: D.N.J. No. 1:25-cv-14723, filed August 19, 2025, stayed behind this case.
• Crypto.com v. Nevada: the source of Supreme Court petition No. 26-344.
• Nevada Gaming Control Board v. Kalshi: the state's enforcement, moved to state court.
• Kalshi v. CFTC: the election-contracts ruling of September 12, 2024 (Judge Cobb) that later Kalshi suits build on; the appeal was dismissed on May 7, 2025.

Questions people ask

What did the court decide in Kalshi v. Flaherty?

On April 6, 2026 the Third Circuit affirmed the preliminary injunction 2-1 (No. 25-1922), finding that Kalshi "has demonstrated a reasonable chance of success" on its preemption claim against New Jersey's enforcement. Judge Roth dissented. This is a preliminary finding, not a final ruling on the merits.

Did New Jersey lose, and is the case over?

Not finally: New Jersey lost at the Third Circuit but asked the Supreme Court to review on September 2, 2026, and no order has issued. The petition is followed with the pending appeals at the Supreme Court and circuits.

Will the Supreme Court hear the Kalshi New Jersey case?

The Court has not acted on petition No. 26-299; Kalshi's response is due December 7, 2026. We state no probability.

Is Kalshi legal in New Jersey?

Kalshi's sports contracts remain available in New Jersey under the federal injunction the Third Circuit affirmed; that is the status of court orders, not a flat yes. See Is Kalshi legal in New Jersey for the full state status.

Which states has Kalshi sued?

Kalshi has sued regulators in a number of states, and the list changes as cases are filed. The state-by-state list is on one tracker: Kalshi court status in every state.

Has Kalshi been sued by anyone else?

Yes: states, tribes and private plaintiffs have sued Kalshi, and every case sits on the company page. See the page of Kalshi lawsuits, company page.

Is there a Kalshi class action or settlement I can join?

No settlement and no class exist in this case, so there is nothing to claim. Privately filed Kalshi class actions are described on the company page.