App will still be available to download in app stores, but ruling did not address other restrictions set to take effect in November. A federal judge halted a Trump administration order to ban TikTok in the United States on Sunday, September 27th,
A federal judge in Washington, D.C., granted TikTok a preliminary injunction against the ban, which was set to take effect this past Sunday at midnight and would’ve forced TikTok to be removed from app stores. The ruling did not address other restrictions in the Executive Order that will take effect on November 12th and will make the app harder to use for those already on it.
Lawyers for TikTok argued that taking the app away was essentially a violation of the rights of users to share their views, both weeks before an election and during pandemic that’s limited real-life interactions. John Hall, one of the app’s attorneys, said a ban would “be no different from the government locking the doors to a public forum.”