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TikTok has officially sued to block a new US law that mandates its sale by ByteDance, its Chinese-based parent company, or faces a potential ban. 

The suit, filed on Tuesday, claims that the “Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversaries Act” violates the First Amendment. The law stipulates that ByteDance must divest TikTok within 270 days, with a possible extension of 90 days granted by the President, to continue its operations in the US.

Congress Tiktok Ban

TikTok argues that a qualified divestiture under these terms is not feasible—commercially, technologically, or legally—potentially leading to the shutdown of the app and affecting its millions of daily American users. The company further criticizes the law for specifically naming TikTok, although it allows for other apps to be regulated in the future. According to TikTok, the constraints set by the law are an “extraordinary and unconstitutional assertion of power.”

TikTok also notes that the passing of this law allows Congress to bypass free speech protections by invoking national security.

This development comes after President Biden signed the bill into law after reaching significant bipartisan support in Congress. In addition to federal action, multiple states have also pursued bans against TikTok, which the company argues have no legal basis. 

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