Facebook has challenged a gag order from a US court that prevents the firm from discussing three government search warrants issued to the social network, claiming the warrants pose a threat to freedom of speech.

According to court documents filed by the company, Facebook is seeking to notify three users about the search warrants, which relate to communications made over its various platforms, and provide them with an opportunity to object to the warrants.

“We believe there are important First Amendment concerns with this case, including the government’s refusal to let us notify three people of broad requests for their account information in connection with public events,” said a Facebook spokesperson.

The court documents challenge the gag order on the grounds of freedom of speech, and because the events underlying the government’s investigation were generally known to the public already. While the precise nature of the government’s investigation is not known, one document in the case does note that the timing of the proceedings coincides with charges against people who protested President Trump’s inauguration in January.

Facebook and other tech companies face thousands of requests for user data every year from governments around the world, and typically comply with such requests, but have been known to challenge government secrecy orders in the past. Facebook most recently fought a US gag order in April, in a case related to a disability fraud investigation, losing to the government in New York state’s highest court.

According to Buzzfeed, which first reported on Facebook’s challenge to the gag order, the case is scheduled to be heard in September in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, the highest court in Washington for local matters.

Don’t forget to enter the Effective Mobile Marketing Awards. The Early Bird deadline for submissions is 22 July. More details here.