TikTok hires Akin Gump to steer US trade and export controls

TikTok Inc. retained Washington law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP to lobby on United States export controls and trade policy, public records showed Sept. 30, 2026.

The engagement marks an operational shift toward technical trade enforcement as the video platform addresses federal scrutiny over its proprietary algorithm and cross-border retail supply chains.

Akin Gump reported $110,000 in lobbying income from TikTok for the second quarter of 2026, according to a statutory disclosure filed Sept. 25. The sum accounts for about 6% of the $1,885,000 TikTok spent across all federal lobbying firms over the past four quarters.

The filing lists Joe Fawkner, a senior policy adviser at Akin Gump, as the sole registered lobbyist. Fawkner previously managed China trade policy at the U.S.-China Business Council and advised corporate importers on international tariff actions.

TikTok specified "issues related to trade and export control policies" as the official scope of activity. The mandate contrasts with the company's other registered lobbying representations, which concentrate on domestic platform governance and communications technology regulation.

The hiring coincided with the termination of TikTok's contract with Ballard Partners LLC. The firm, known for its connections to Republican leadership, filed a formal termination report during the same second-quarter cycle after representing the platform on general technology matters.

TikTok maintained active representation through three other external lobbying firms during the second quarter. Disclosures on file with the clerk of the House show continuing contracts with Crossroads Strategies LLC, AND Partners LLC and Dentons US LLP.

Federal trade controls represent a mounting compliance barrier for TikTok parent company ByteDance Ltd. The Beijing-based technology group faces overlapping legal mandates in Washington and Beijing that complicate its corporate structure and cross-border commercial services.

Under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, ByteDance must execute a qualified divestiture of TikTok to avoid a nationwide distribution prohibition. The statute requires the operating company to establish complete operational independence from foreign adversary entities.

The federal divestiture law specifically targets operational cooperation regarding content recommendations. The legislation bans any successor company from cooperating with ByteDance in operating, training or maintaining the core algorithm that selects and delivers video content to American users.

Chinese export control authorities concurrently classify recommendation software as a restricted dual-use technology. Under Chinese technology transfer regulations, ByteDance cannot license, export or transfer algorithmic source code to foreign entities without formal regulatory review and administrative export licensing.

Akin Gump will also navigate trade policies affecting TikTok Shop, the platform's social commerce division. The e-commerce marketplace relies heavily on cross-border logistics pipelines that deliver manufactured consumer merchandise directly from suppliers located in mainland China and Hong Kong.

Federal trade authorities terminated duty-free de minimis customs treatment for covered low-value imports from China and Hong Kong on May 2, 2026. The regulatory revision ended preferential entry rules for commercial shipments valued under $800, altering cost structures for cross-border e-commerce networks.

The loss of de minimis treatment requires digital marketplaces to process formal customs documentation and pay applicable duties on parcel deliveries. The added regulatory procedures create border processing delays and impose documentation burdens on small-volume overseas sellers.

Akin Gump operates an international trade and regulatory practice focused on national security compliance, economic sanctions and Bureau of Industry and Security enforcement. The practice routinely advises corporate clients on dual-use export classification requests and supply chain compliance protocols.

The firm previously represented multinational manufacturing corporations during congressional deliberations over Section 301 tariffs. Fawkner advised corporate clients on product exclusion requests, customs valuation standards and supply chain diversification away from Chinese manufacturing hubs.

TikTok has expanded its government affairs investments across Washington as scrutiny from federal regulators deepened. The company directed $1,885,000 toward federal lobbying firms across the four consecutive quarters ending June 30, according to congressional database records.

Congressional committees have also explored legislation expanding export control authorities to cloud computing access and artificial intelligence weights. Such statutory expansions would prevent foreign firms from training advanced algorithmic models using United States data infrastructure.

The filing does not state which specific export control classifications or customs dockets the firm will target, and neither TikTok nor Akin Gump released a public comment.

Third-quarter federal lobbying disclosures covering representation through September are due to the clerk of the House and secretary of the Senate on Oct. 20, 2026.

Legal proceedings challenging the constitutionality and statutory deadlines of the federal divestiture mandate remain under review before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.