Written by David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court said on Monday it will hold oral arguments on Sept. 16 on legal challenges to a new law requiring China-based ByteDance to divest TikTok’s U.S. assets by Jan. 19 or face a ban.
On May 14, a group of TikTok creators filed a lawsuit to block a law that could ban the app used by 170 million Americans, saying it had a “profound impact on American life” after TikTok and its parent company ByteDance filed a similar lawsuit.
The hearing before the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia will put TikTok’s fate in the middle of the final weeks of the 2024 presidential election. Earlier this month, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump joined TikTok and raised concerns about a potential ban.
TikTok and ByteDance creators must submit legal briefs by Thursday and to the Justice Department by July 26, with response briefs by August 15.
TikTok and the Justice Department sought a ruling by December 6 in order to seek review from the Supreme Court if necessary.
A third legal challenge was filed on June 6 by the Liberty Justice Center, which represents BASED Politics Inc., a conservative group that posts videos on TikTok.
The law, signed by President Joe Biden on April 24, gives ByteDance until January 19 to sell TikTok or face a ban. The White House says it wants to end ownership of the app in China on national security grounds, not impose a ban on TikTok.
The law prohibits app stores such as Apple (NASDAQ:) and Alphabet’s Google (NASDAQ:) from offering TikTok and prevents internet hosting services from supporting TikTok unless they are pulled by ByteDance.
Because of concerns among US lawmakers that China could access Americans’ data or spy on them through the app, the measure passed overwhelmingly in Congress just weeks after it was introduced.
