Federal appeals court declines to temporarily block ban on TikTok, teeing up showdown at SCOTUS over controversial law
CNNCNN — A federal appeals court on Friday declined to temporarily block a ban on TikTok, teeing up a showdown at the Supreme Court over whether the law should take effect while the social media platform’s challenge to it plays out. The company has indicated in court filings that if the appeals court declined to grant interim relief, it would ask the Supreme Court to step in on an emergency basis to block the law for now. Attorneys for the company had argued to the appeals court that declining to temporarily block the law would force the Supreme Court to review the matter on its so-called shadow docket “in mere weeks.” “Out of respect for the Supreme Court’s vital role, this Court should grant an interim injunction that enables a more deliberate and orderly process,” they wrote in court papers. The Biden administration, meanwhile, had urged the appeals court to not issue a temporary block on the law, arguing that doing so might allow the company to wait months to appeal the case to the Supreme Court, effectively halting the law indefinitely.