Overview
The third of the three Nevada appeals the Ninth Circuit heard together, and the one that tests the distribution layer rather than the venue. Robinhood Derivatives, LLC is a CFTC-registered futures commission merchant — a broker routing event-contract orders to venues including KalshiEX, ForecastEx and Rothera — and it sued the Gaming Control Board, the Gaming Commission and the Attorney General in August 2025 for a permanent injunction and declaratory relief. The Nevada Resort Association intervened as a defendant. Chief Judge Andrew P. Gordon, the same judge who dissolved Kalshi’s Nevada injunction and turned away Crypto.com, heard argument on November 14, 2025 and denied the temporary restraining order on November 25, 2025. He then denied Robinhood an injunction pending appeal in December 2025.
The Ninth Circuit AFFIRMED on August 28, 2026, before Judges R. Nelson, Bade and Lee. Weight it correctly. The disposition is an unpublished memorandum — not precedent except as Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3 allows — and it carries almost no reasoning of its own. It resolves the appeal by pin cite to the opinion filed the same day in Assad: sports event contracts are not "swaps" under 7 U.S.C. § 1a(47)(A)(ii) (slip op. 41), are not transactions in excluded commodities (41–42), and Robinhood’s conflict- and field-preemption arguments fail (42–45). The panel also rejected the contention that Nevada "must bring a direct challenge to [the CFTC] under the APA" (18–20).
The district case was not resolved. Robinhood’s motion to stay proceedings below was denied, Nevada answered, and discovery has been running since — with the deadline extended to January 22, 2027.
Timeline
August 2025
Robinhood Derivatives sues Nevada’s gaming regulators and Attorney General; the Nevada Resort Association intervenes as a defendant.
November 2025
After argument, Chief Judge Gordon denies the temporary restraining order.
December 2025
The district court denies an injunction pending appeal; Robinhood appeals to the Ninth Circuit (No. 25-7831).
April 2026
Argued and submitted with the Kalshi and Crypto.com appeals to Judges R. Nelson, Bade and Lee.
August 2026
The panel affirms by unpublished memorandum disposition, the same day it decides Assad.
September 10, 2026
Robinhood petitions the Supreme Court for certiorari (No. 26-338).
October 9, 2026
The Supreme Court extends the time to respond to the petition to November 13, 2026.
What's next: Petition for certiorari No. 26-338, filed September 10, 2026. On October 9 the Court extended the time to respond to November 13, 2026, for all respondents; no further extension request appeared on the docket as of its November 5 update, though Nevada sought one in Crypto.com’s parallel petition on November 6. The petition tells the Court it may wish to wait for the CFTC’s forthcoming rule, but asks that it be granted too if New Jersey’s is. The district case was never stayed. The parties filed a stipulation on October 9 and the court entered an order on it, with a scheduling order, on October 15; its terms are not on the public record, so the January 22, 2027 discovery deadline may have moved. November 13, 2026: Nevada’s response to the cert petition due (No. 26-338, extended)
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