The popular social media app TikTok asked the Supreme Court on Monday to block a law forcing it to sell by Jan. 19 or stop operating in the United States.
In a petition to the high court, the company asked the justices to issue an injunction halting the ban on its domestic operations from going into effect and to take up the dispute for review.
The company says the law violates the First Amendment and will affect 170 million American users.
“Congress has enacted a massive and unprecedented speech restriction,” the filing read. “The Act will shutter one of America’s most popular speech platforms the day before a presidential inauguration.”
TikTok asked the justices to issue a decision on the injunction by Jan. 6.
“The Supreme Court has an established record of upholding Americans’ right to free speech. Today, TikTok is asking the Court to do what it has traditionally done in free speech cases: apply the most rigorous scrutiny to speech bans and conclude that it violates the First Amendment,” said Michael Hughes, a spokesperson for TikTok.
SEE ALSO: Trump says he has a ‘warm spot’ for TikTok, signals openness to stopping ban
“The TikTok ban results in a massive and unprecedented censorship of over 170 million Americans on January 19, 2025. Estimates show that small businesses on TikTok would lose more than $1 billion in revenue and creators would suffer almost $300 million in lost earnings in just one month unless the ban is halted,” he added.
The company’s filing said the justices should take up the novel dispute.
A group of more than half a dozen TikTok users also petitioned the court asking it to halt the law.
They say TikTok helps their businesses in a way other social media platforms have not, due to editing tools through TikTok and recommendations via the video-sharing app.
A three-judge panel in Washington ruled earlier this month to uphold the law against the Chinese-owned company.
The ban, approved by Congress and signed by President Biden in April, will go into effect if ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, hasn’t divested itself of the app.
The legislation won bipartisan support in Congress from lawmakers concerned that TikTok poses a national security threat by collecting users’ data. The concern is that data collected by the company could be turned over to the Chinese government.
The Justice Department has said TikTok received direction about content on its platform from China’s communist authorities, the Associated Press reported.
With President-elect Donald Trump taking office next month, it’s unclear if the Justice Department will continue to back the law.
Mr. Trump’s position on TikTok has changed over time. He initially recognized it as a national security threat but has softened on the platform and has an account. He also posted about it on Truth Social in September, saying he would “save TikTok in America.”
On Monday, he said that his administration will take a look at the issue because he believes the app helped him gain some ground with young voters.
“I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok because I won Youth [voters] by 34 points!” Mr. Trump said during a press conference on Monday.
CNN also reported Mr. Trump was set to meet with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at Mar-a-Lago.
Mr. Trump will take office on Jan. 20, one day after the law is scheduled to take effect.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.