Telegram lawyers preparing petition to appeal vs blocking

MOSCOW, Apr 26 (PRIME) -- Lawyers of Telegram are preparing a petition to appeal against a Moscow court’s decision on blocking the popular messenger in the country, and a procedural appeal was filed almost immediately, Dmitry Kolbasin, a spokesperson for international human rights group Agora, which protects Telegram’s interests at courts, said on Thursday.

The Tagansky District Court of Moscow received the procedural appeal. As a rule, a court decision is implemented upon its taking effect, but in case with Telegram, the court allowed the communications service to trigger the closure immediately.

The law gives participants of a process 30 days to challenge a court decision. In the petition to appeal, the defenders will ask the court to fully cancel the move on blocking, while the procedural appeal protests against the immediate execution.

According to experts, Russian companies could lose about U.S. $1 billion because of Telegram’s blocking, under the worst scenario, while total losses of business in the country and abroad could reach $2 billion.

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