Novig, a prediction market operator, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin on August 14, seeking a federal injunction to stop Wisconsin from applying its gambling statutes to sports event contracts traded on its federally regulated exchange.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission designated Ludlow Exchange, the platform operating as Novig, as a designated contract market on June 16, subjecting its contracts to the Commodity Exchange Act. The suit follows similar legal actions by Novig in four other states since August 4.

In the complaint, Novig requests a preliminary and permanent injunction and a declaration that federal commodities law preempts Wisconsin statutes when applied to its contracts. The company argues that its sports contracts are federally regulated derivatives and fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the CFTC. Wisconsin officials have not yet filed a response, and the court has not ruled on the requested injunction.

The case is part of a broader dispute between federal and state regulators over the authority to regulate sports prediction markets, and a decision on federal preemption remains pending.