TikTok heads to court to fight for its life

• TikTok will be in court Monday in DC to fight a law calling for it to be banned or sold.
• TikTok argues the law, set to go into effect in January, violates the First Amendment.
• Americans have cooled on wanting to ban the app, a recent survey found.

The TikTok ban is having its day in court.

TikTok is headed to federal court in Washington on Monday to fight a law that would ban it nationwide or force its sale to a US owner.

Under a law signed by President Joe Biden in April as part of a foreign-aid package, the TikTok ban would go into effect in January. Leading up to Monday's hearing, there's been relative silence about the app's fate, both inside and outside the company.

State and federal US politicians have argued that China could compel TikTok's owner, ByteDance, to share US user data with the Chinese Communist Party or use the app for an influence campaign.

TikTok has repeatedly denied the claims and said there's no evidence to support them.

In May, TikTok sued to stop the ban, arguing it violated users' First Amendment rights.

The New York Times reported that on Monday, after arguments are heard, a three-judge panel would ask questions to both sides, which may suggest which way the jurists are leaning.

A decision could arrive as early as November, the Times said — though the Supreme Court is likely to decide whether it will hear the case before the January ban date.

Meanwhile, a recent Pew Research Center survey found American attitudes toward banning TikTok had cooled across party lines.

In March 2023, half of US adults in the poll said they supported a ban. In a Pew survey from July 15 to August 4, just 32% of respondents said they supported the law.

TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.