A federal judge has extended the temporary order stopping Paramount’s proposed $111 billion merger with Warner Bros. for a further 14 days, preventing the deal from closing before 18 August. The pause gives the court time to consider whether to impose a longer-term injunction, amid claims that the merger would unlawfully reduce competition in cable television and theatrical distribution.

Twelve state attorneys general are challenging the deal under the Clayton Act, while the Writers Guild of America argues it could depress writers’ pay and make film and television output less diverse. A hearing on the injunction requests is scheduled for 3 August; Paramount wants a three-day evidentiary hearing later that month to question witnesses, while the states want a decision without such a hearing.