The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has expedited oral arguments in a legal challenge against a law that could result in a ban on the video-sharing app TikTok. The court has scheduled hearings to take place in September. TikTok’s lawsuit comes in response to legislation signed into law by Joe Biden in April as part of a broader foreign aid package approved by Congress.
The legislation mandates that TikTok, currently owned by China-based ByteDance, be sold within a year or be removed from U.S. app stores. TikTok and ByteDance filed a lawsuit against the Department of Justice (DOJ) in early in May, asserting that the law infringes on the First Amendment rights of its users and should, therefore, be blocked.
A collective of significant TikTok users joined the legal fray, also filing a suit this month to challenge the law. U.S. officials have criticized TikTok based on national security concerns, arguing that the Chinese government could exploit the platform’s data to monitor or influence American users. Congressional concerns led to the recent legislative action.
In its legal filing, TikTok warned that the enforced sale would necessitate a complete shutdown of the app by January 19, 2025, depriving its 170 million American users of a crucial communication platform. “There is no question: the Act will force a shutdown of TikTok by January 19, 2025, silencing the 170 million Americans who use the platform to communicate in ways that cannot be replicated elsewhere,” the company stated.