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TikTok, Inc. v. Garland

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Supreme Court of the United States
TikTok, Inc. v. Garland
Term: 2024
Important Dates
Argued: January 10, 2025
Decided: January 17, 2025
Outcome
affirmed
Vote
9-0
Majority
Per curiam

TikTok, Inc. v. Garland is a case that was decided by the Supreme Court of the United States on January 17, 2025, during the court's October 2024-2025 term. The case was argued on January 10, 2025.

The Court affirmed the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a 9-0 ruling, holding that the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act did not violate the First Amendment. The Court issued a per curiam opinion.[1] Click here for more information about the ruling.

HIGHLIGHTS
  • The issue: The case concerned the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act and the First Amendment. Click here to learn more about the case's background.
  • The questions presented: "Whether the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, as applied to petitioners, violates the First Amendment."[2]
  • The outcome: The Court affirmed the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in a 9-0 ruling, holding that the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act did not violate the First Amendment.


    • The case came on a writ of certiorari to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. To review the lower court's opinion, click here.

    Background

    Case summary

    The following are the parties to this case:[3]

    • Petitioner: TikTok Inc. and ByteDance Ltd
      • Legal counsel: Noel J. Francisco (Jones Day)
    • Respondent: Merrick B. Garland, Attorney General


    The following summary of the case was published by Oyez.[4]

    “ TikTok is a social media platform with approximately 170 million monthly U.S. users that allows users to create and watch short video clips. The platform’s content is determined by a recommendation engine originally developed by ByteDance, a China-based company that is TikTok’s ultimate parent. While TikTok created a U.S. subsidiary (TTUSDS) and partnered with Oracle to handle U.S. operations and data security, ByteDance retains significant control over the platform's global operations and source code development.


    In response to national security concerns about Chinese influence over TikTok, both the Trump and Biden administrations attempted various measures to address these risks, including attempted forced divestiture and transaction bans. After lengthy negotiations over TikTok’s proposed National Security Agreement proved unsuccessful, Congress passed a law in 2024 requiring “foreign adversary controlled applications” (specifically including TikTok) to divest from foreign ownership or face effective shutdown through prohibitions on U.S. companies providing hosting and distribution services. The law takes effect on January 19, 2025, though companies can avoid the prohibitions by completing a qualified divestiture that eliminates foreign adversary control and operational relationships.
    Three sets of petitioners (ByteDance/TikTok, Based Politics, and eight individual TikTok creators) filed constitutional challenges to the Act in May 2024, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit concluded that the Act survived constitutional scrutiny.[5]

    		”

    To learn more about this case, see the following:

    Timeline

    The following timeline details key events in this case:

    Questions presented

    The petitioner presented the following questions to the court:[2]

    Questions presented:
    “ Whether the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, as applied to petitioners, violates the First Amendment.[5] ”

    Oral argument

    Audio

    Audio of oral argument:[6]



    Transcript

    Transcript of oral argument:[7]

    Outcome

    In a per curiam opinion, the court affirmed the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, holding that the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act did not violate the First Amendment.[1]

    Opinion

    In the court's per curiam opinion, the Court wrote:[1]

    “

    There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community. But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary. For the foregoing reasons, we conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate petitioners’ First Amendment rights. The judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is affirmed.[5]

    		”

    Text of the opinion

    Read the full opinion here.

    October term 2024-2025

    See also: Supreme Court cases, October term 2024-2025

    The Supreme Court began hearing cases for the term on October 7, 2024. The court's yearly term begins on the first Monday in October and lasts until the first Monday in October the following year. The court generally releases the majority of its decisions in mid-June.[8]

    See also

    External links

    Footnotes

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Supreme Court of the United States, "TIKTOK INC., ET AL., PETITIONERS v. MERRICK B. GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL / BRIAN FIREBAUGH, ET AL., PETITIONERS 24–657 v. MERRICK B. GARLAND, ATTORNEY GENERAL," January 17, 2025
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Supreme Court of the United States, "24-656 TIKTOK, INC. V. GARLAND QP", December 18, 2024
    3. ↑ Supreme Court of the United States, "No. 24-656accessed 45646
    4. ↑ Oyez, TikTok, Inc. v. Garland," accessed January 14, 2024
    5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
    6. ↑ Supreme Court of the United States, "Oral Argument - Audio," argued January 10, 2025
    7. ↑ Supreme Court of the United States, "Oral Argument - Transcript," argued January 10, 2025
    8. ↑ SupremeCourt.gov, "The Supreme Court at Work: The Term and Caseload," accessed January 24, 2022
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