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The Future. A new lawsuit against the US government’s plan to force the sale of TikTok sets the stage for a battle between expression and security. Considering the legal firm behind the lawsuit has had past success stopping a ban of the app, and the law’s provision that suits can only be filed in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, expect the debate to quickly make its way to the Supreme Court.
The value of a TikTok
Eight very different creators (just see here, here, and here) are suing to keep TikTok in the US.
- They argue that TikToks are a unique form of expression without a one-to-one equivalent that, if lost, would negatively impact the livelihood of millions of users.
- They allege that they’ve tried posting their content on other platforms, but they don’t garner anywhere near the same reach and engagement as they do on TikTok.
- The lawsuit claims that banning the platform due to classified national security concerns is also a violation of free speech.
The lawsuit was filed by Seattle-based firm Davis Wright Tremaine (and is being paid for by TikTok), which was also behind the successful challenges to the first ban of the app under former President Trump and Montana’s state-only ban.
Another point of interest: Erich Andersen, ByteDance’s general counsel who is spearheading its lawsuit, also worked at Davis Wright Tremaine in the early 90s. Small world.
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