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U.S. WeChat Users Alliance v. Trump

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U.S. WeChat Users Alliance v. Trump
CourtUnited States District Court for the Northern District of California
Full case name U.S. WeChat Users Alliance, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al.

U.S. WeChat Users Alliance (USWUA) v. Trump was a court case pending before the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. The plaintiffs won a preliminary injunction on September 20, 2020, blocking the Trump administration's ban order against WeChat based on concerns raised about harm to First Amendment rights and the hardships imposed on a minority community using the app as a primary means of communication.[1][2] The lawsuit was dismissed in July 2021, following the Biden Administration's rescission of the executive order.

Background

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WeChat is a highly popular social media app in China. Many American families depend on WeChat as a means of communicating with family and friends in China.[3]

On August 6, 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order, invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, seeking to ban WeChat in the U.S. in 45 days, due to its connections with the Chinese-owned Tencent. This was signed alongside a similar executive order targeting TikTok (TikTok v. Trump) and its Chinese-owned ByteDance.[4] Following the EO, the Department of Commerce issued orders on September 18, 2020, to enact the ban on WeChat and TikTok by the end of September 20, 2020, citing national security and data privacy concerns.[5][6]

Plaintiff

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The plaintiff is the U.S. WeChat Users Alliance, including individuals Jinneng Bao, Chihuo Inc., Brent Coulter, Fangyi Duan, Elaine Peng, and Xiao Zhang.[7] The alliance's trustees are described by the New York Times as including "several prominent Chinese-American lawyers". The group says it is not connected to Tencent.[2]

Proceedings

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Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Department of Commerce order on WeChat on September 20, 2020, citing the merits of the plaintiffs' First Amendment claims.[8] The U.S. Justice Department appealed this injunction on 2 October 2020, calling Judge Beeler's decision an "error".[9] On October 23, Judge Beeler said the new evidence presented by the U.S. Justice Department in early October did not change her mind regarding her injunction of the White House order.[10] On December 23, the Trump administration asked the court to drop the U.S. WeChat Users Alliance v. Trump case to follow through on its ban of WeChat.[11]

On 31 December 2020, the NYSE announced it would apply a White House order banning three Chinese telecom companies from US trading floors, including Alipay and WeChat Pay. Then, in early January 2021, Donald Trump issued an order to ban a total of 8 mobile apps on US soils, WeChat included, but the order would become effective under the Biden administration.[12][13]

In 2021, the Biden administration dropped the ban on TikTok and WeChat with a new executive order that mandates accountability measures.[14] The plaintiffs then moved to dismiss the case, which was granted.[15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Trump administration's WeChat ban is blocked by U.S. district court". Tech Crunch. September 21, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "U.S. Judge Temporarily Halts Trump's WeChat Ban". New York Times. September 20, 2020.
  3. ^ "'It's So Essential': WeChat Ban Makes U.S.-China Standoff Personal". New York Times. September 18, 2020.
  4. ^ Arbel, Tali (August 6, 2020). "Trump bans dealings with Chinese owners of TikTok, WeChat". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  5. ^ Shepardson, David (2020-09-18). "EXCLUSIVE-Trump to block U.S. downloads of TikTok, WeChat on Sunday- officials". Reuters. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  6. ^ Kelly, Makena (2020-09-18). "Trump to ban US TikTok and WeChat app store downloads on September 20th". The Verge. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  7. ^ Beeler, Laurel D. "U.S. WeChat Users Alliance v. Trump (3:20-cv-05910)". Court Listener. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  8. ^ Shepardson, David (September 20, 2020). "U.S. judge blocks Commerce Department order to remove WeChat from app stores". Reuters. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  9. ^ David Shepardson, U.S. government appeals judge's ruling to block WeChat app store ban, Reuters.com, 2 October 2020
  10. ^ Kim Lyons, Judge again blocks Trump administration push to ban WeChat in the US, Theverge.com, 23 October 2020
  11. ^ Joel Rosenblatt, Trump Wants WeChat Users’ Suit Challenging Restrictions Tossed, Bloomberg.com, 23 December 2020
  12. ^ Jeanne Whalen, NYSE will remove share listings of Chinese telecom companies as Trump moves to ban Chinese apps Alipay and WeChat Pay, Washingtonpost.com, 6 January 2021
  13. ^ Justin Sink, Jennifer Jacobs, Trump tries to ban transactions with Chinese payment apps, Fortune.com, 5 January 2021
  14. ^ Allyn, Bobby (June 9, 2021). "Biden Drops Trump's Ban on TikTok And WeChat — But Will Continue The Scrutiny". NPR. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  15. ^ "Filings". USWUA. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
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