Christian Davis Quoted by CNN on Implications for TikTok after Expiration of Spin-Off Deadline

Christian Davis, a partner in Akin Gump’s international trade practice, has been quoted in the CNN story, “Trump blew up TikTok and now nobody knows what’s going on.”

The article reports that TikTok faces a November 12 deadline to be spun off from its Chinese parent, ByteDance, following an executive order by President Trump in August. According to CNN, the executive order came after an investigation by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which reviews mergers and foreign investment deals for potential impacts on U.S. national security.

With TikTok having filed an emergency petition with a federal appeals court to preempt the deadline, the article says CFIUS could provide a 30-day extension as a proposed deal continues to be reviewed. Another potential outcome, the article says, is that TikTok misses the deadline and Attorney General William Barr takes the company to court to have the executive order enforced.

“At that point,” Davis said, “the court would presumably address the issues that ByteDance raised in its petition and decide on the extent to which it will enforce the order.”