Online gambling operator The Stars Group (TSG) is – for the moment – off the hook for an $870m civil judgment imposed three years ago in the state of Kentucky.

On Friday, TSG announced that the Kentucky Court of Appeals had “reversed in its entirety” the preposterous $870m judgment that a Commonwealth of Kentucky judge imposed as punishment for PokerStars’ activities in the state prior to the brand’s US market exit in 2011.

The original judgment was issued in November 2015 by Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate, who ordered TSG – then known as Amaya Gaming – to pay $290m to the state for serving state residents without a state permission. The following month, Wingate trebled those damages to $870m (plus interest).

The state targeted a number of online gambling companies in this fashion using a 19th century statute that allowed individuals or entities to recoup unrelated third parties’ gambling losses. Some companies, such as Bwin.party (now GVC Holdings) chose the path of least resistance and cut the state an eight-figure check.