SAN FRANCISCO – TikTok plans to file a lawsuit against the U.S. government, the company confirmed on Saturday, claiming that President Trump’s steps to block the app had removed the unfair process and argued that it was unfair and was mistreated as a security threat.
The lawsuit, which the company will file new week plans, would amount to the most public pushback against the United States by TikTok, which is owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance. The company plans to argue that it was not delivered process before the president’s executive order to ban the app from the United States within 45 days.
“Even though we do not agree with the administration’s concerns, we have sought for almost a year to act in good faith to provide a constructive solution,” TikTok spokesman Josh Gartner said in a statement. “What we encountered instead was a lack of due process, because the administration did not pay attention to facts and tried to engage itself in negotiations between private companies.”
For months, Mr. Trump has rails against TikTok and its ties to China, claiming that the app was a national security threat and that it could share data about its users with the Chinese government. On August 6, Mr. Trump issued an executive order against TikTok, saying it would ban transactions with the app within 45 days. One week later, he later issued a separate executive order giving ByteDance 90 days to separate its U.S. assets and all data that TikTok had collected in the United States.
Mr. Trump’s actions have prompted ByteDance to seek a sale of TikTok’s US operations to a US company. Microsoft and Oracle are among those who have recently held discussions for such a deal. The companies remain in negotiations for a potential purchase of TikTok.
TikTok, which has repeatedly denied sharing data with Beijing, had previously sought to pacify the Trump administration. But as the White House’s actions escalated, TikTok became more critical of its movements.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The first executive assignment of Mr. Trump v. TikTok draws its legal authority from the International Law of Emergency Economic Powers Act, which allows the president to regulate economic transactions in a national emergency regulation. Former administrations have used it to rehabilitate foreign governments, such as terrorists, drug lords and hackers, but never a leading technology company with global operations.
Former administrations have also used the authority somewhat cautiously, envying that a legal challenge could result in a court that diminishes some of the president’s expanded powers. Some Trump administration advisers are also concerned about such an outcome, but others view the economic forces as a kind of low-level control, giving the administration an expanded authority to restrict U.S. commerce.
Jason M. Waite, a partner at Alston and Bird, said the order raises serious questions, including whether the facility could be used to register people as companies in the United States, even if they had a foreign parent company.
“Using this authority against a Hezbollah leader does not have a lawsuit like the use of this authority against a large global technology company,” he said. He added that the chances would be in favor of the president, but that the administration had still opened itself up to the possibility of limiting its economic powers.
Reuters previously reported on TikTok’s plan to file case.
Mike Isaac reported from San Francisco and Ana Swanson from Washington.
