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Huawei asks U.S. court to declare federal ban unconstitutional

Song Liuping, chief legal officer of Chinese tech giant Huawei, speaks during a press conference at the Huawei facilities in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, on May 29, 2019.
Huawei chief legal officer Song Liuping. Photo: Hector Retamal/AFP/Getty Images

Chinese tech giant Huawei said Wednesday it had filed a motion in a U.S. court seeking to challenge United States legislation that places it on a trade blacklist, which it called "illegal."

QuotePoliticians in the U.S. are using the strength of an entire nation to come after a private company. This is not normal. Almost never seen in history."
— Huawei chief legal officer Song Liuping statement

Why it matters: Huawei is the second leading provider of Android devices, next to Samsung. If the ban stands, network operators that use Huawei gear and owners of Huawei phones could have found themselves quickly vulnerable to security or other issues, with the tech company barred from helping resolve them.

The big picture: Huawei filed a lawsuit in March challenging the constitutionality of he National Defense Authorization Act, which keeps it from selling its telecommunications gear in the U.S. President Trump issued an executive order this month prohibiting U.S. firms from using telecom services that are solely owned, controlled, or directed by a foreign adversary.

  • The U.S. and other governments have accused China of sabotaging Huawei equipment to use for espionage and of profiting from stolen intellectual property, but Song said there's no evidence to show that the firm is a security threat. "There is no gun, no smoke. Only speculation," he said.
  • Song said the new U.S. ban set a "dangerous precedent."
"Today it's telecoms and Huawei. Tomorrow it could be your industry, your company, your consumers."

Go deeper: How the new Huawei ban will affect the U.S.

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