A federal judge is expected to decide on Sunday morning if the US government has the legal rights to ban the video-sharing app TikTok.

ByteDance, who owns the app had approached the court earlier this month to block President Trump’s ban that is scheduled to begin on Sunday night. The case will be heard by District Court Judge Carl Nichols.

In a hearing on Friday, Nichols did not agree with the claims of the government lawyers’ that the ban — which would not immediately prevent usage of TikTok but prevent downloads by new users and updates — “merely preserves the status quo,” AFP reported.

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The court also gave Trump administration time until 11 pm on Friday to either delay the TikTok or to file documents in defence of the action.

The Trump administration had announced a ban on the company alleging that it poses a threat to national security because of China’s influence. On August 6, the President also had issued executive orders banning transactions with the video app within 45 days if it did not sell off its assets.

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Subsequently, Bytedance struck a deal with Oracle to start a joint venture ‘TikTok’ global. Though Trump initially ‘blessed’ the deal, he soon walked back the remark and said that he will not approve the deal if its parent firm ByteDance retains any control.

TikTok said that the ban is a violation of First Amendment free-speech rights. It added in the lawsuit that United States President Donald Trump surpassed his authority and alleged that he imposed the ban for political reasons instead of an “unusual and extraordinary threat”.