Filed Date: March 5, 2026
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding complete
Two California software engineers who own shares in Alphabet and Meta filed a petition in the D.C. Circuit on March 5, 2026, challenging how President Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi handled the 2024 law passed by Congress that required ByteDance (TikTok’s Chinese owner) to sell TikTok by January 19, 2025.
Plaintiffs allege Trump illegally gave five deadline extensions and told the Attorney General not to enforce the law. On January 22, 2026, Trump allegedly approved a sale of TikTok's U.S. assets to Oracle, MGX, and Susquehanna International Group at a significantly undervalued price and in a way that still let ByteDance keep key control – especially over the recommendation algorithm, important operations, and board influence. The petitioners argue that means ByteDance could still control the essential elements of TikTok and would be able to push Chinese propaganda while censoring the content it does not like.
Plaintiffs claim that this sale caused them to suffer financially. By sanctioning this allegedly unlawful deal, the government has created a legal impediment to plaintiffs' financial recovery. The petitioners brought claims for ultra vires action, violations of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), and equitable relief – seeking declarations that the extensions and sale approval were unlawful, direction for the Attorney General to conduct required investigations, and attorneys' fees.
This case is ongoing.
Summary Authors
Maddy Ligon (4/13/2026)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72369202/parties/zhaocheng-tan-v-donald-trump/
Ballou, Brendan (District of Columbia)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72369202/zhaocheng-tan-v-donald-trump/
Last updated April 20, 2026, 3:11 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Presidential/Gubernatorial Authority
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: March 5, 2026
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Two California software engineers who own shares in Alphabet and Meta.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Federal
DONALD TRUMP
PAM BONDI
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. §§ 551 et seq.
Other Dockets:
U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit 26-01047
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Sought:
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
Presidential/Gubernatorial Authority:
Case Summary of Zhaocheng Tan v. Donald Trump, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/47893/ (last updated 4/13/2026).