TikTok's urgent appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court amid looming ban

In a final effort to maintain its presence in the United States, TikTok has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to temporarily block a law that could force ByteDance, its parent company based in China, to divest from TikTok by January 19, 2025. If ByteDance fails to comply, TikTok could face a nationwide ban.

On December 16, TikTok and ByteDance submitted

In April, the U.S. Department of Justice classified TikTok, as a Chinese-owned company, as

President-elect Donald Trump previously attempted to ban TikTok during his first term in 2020 but was unsuccessful. However, in a reversal of his earlier stance, Trump has promised to save TikTok if elected in the upcoming presidential race.

Trump is set to take office on January 20, 2024, just one day after TikTok’s compliance deadline. TikTok has requested the Supreme Court to issue a decision before January 6, 2025.

This legal battle unfolds against the backdrop of escalating trade tensions between the United States and China, the world’s two largest economies. Notably, Trump also sought to ban WeChat, owned by China’s Tencent, in 2020, but this effort was blocked by the courts.