Huawei asks courts to overturn US ban claiming it is unconstitutional

Section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act 2019 declares Huawei guilty without trial, the company claims

Huawei has filed a motion in a Plano, Texas court today claiming that the de facto US government ban on its hardware brought in under the National Defense Authorization Act 2019 (NDAA) is unconstitutional.

The motion follows on from a complaint filed by Huawei in March. It claims that section 889 of the Act, banning US government agencies and their contractors from using Huawei hardware on national security grounds represents a ‘bill of attainder', making it guilty without trial.

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Bills of attainder are banned under sections nine and ten of the US constitution. While the US government ban only refers to government agencies and contractors, it effectively stops Huawei from selling its communications hardware in the US entirely.

Huawei argues that the US government is attempting to put the company out of business. That claim was firmed up with the suspension of support by chip designer ARM last week after the US government added Huawei to its "Entity List" of organisations that US suppliers need to acquire a licence before supplying components, goods or services.

UK-based ARM's legal advice suggests that because it uses US-sourced technology, it is also covered by the US embargo of Huawei.

"They are using every tool they have, including legislative, administrative, and diplomatic channels. They want to put us out of business," claimed Huawei's chief legal officer Song Liuping in a statement.

He added: "The judicial system is the last line of defense for justice. Huawei has confidence in the independence and integrity of the US judicial system. We hope that mistakes in the NDAA can be corrected by the court."

If section 889 is ruled unconstitutional, Huawei will seek to have the ban overturned.

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