Missouri files UIGEA counterclaims against Kalshi over sports event contracts

Missouri Attorney General Catherine L. Hanaway filed a 69-page answer and counterclaims against KalshiEX LLC on November 11, 2026, in KalshiEX LLC v. Hanaway (E.D. Mo., No. 4:26-cv-01860, ECF 26, 8:43 p.m. Central). The pleading, now in CourtListener's RECAP archive, asks District Judge Maria A. Lanahan to stop Kalshi accepting payments from Missouri residents. Kalshi sued on October 27.

As counter-plaintiff, the Attorney General asserts three counterclaims:

• UIGEA (Counterclaim I). The filing calls Kalshi an unlicensed "person engaged in the business of betting or wagering." It treats sports wagers by Missouri residents on Kalshi's internet platform as "unlawful Internet gambling" under 31 U.S.C. § 5362(10)(A), alleges a § 5363 violation, and seeks a temporary restraining order and preliminary and permanent injunctions under § 5365.
• Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (Counterclaim II). The state calls the sale of unlicensed sports wagering an "unfair practice" under Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.020 and seeks an injunction, restitution, and civil penalties of up to $1,000 per violation under § 407.100.
• Public nuisance (Counterclaim III). Citing State ex rel. Igoe v. Joynt (Mo. 1937), she asks the court to declare Kalshi's operation a public nuisance and to enjoin it.

The prayer also asks the court to dismiss Kalshi's complaint with prejudice. Solicitor General Louis J. Capozzi III signed the filing. The counterclaims are allegations and have not been tested in court.

A November 10 stipulation already bars state-court or state-agency enforcement against Kalshi until final judgment or a non-voluntary dismissal of the state's state-law counterclaims. Kalshi withdrew its temporary-restraining-order request but kept its preliminary-injunction request; its reply is due November 16. The case is on AskSpinner's prediction-market litigation tracker. Related coverage: Kalshi's motion for a restraining order and Missouri's November 9 counterclaims against Novig's exchange.