9th Circuit Allows Thousands of Social Media Addiction Lawsuits to Proceed

A federal appeals court in San Francisco rejected a bid by Meta Platforms, Alphabet’s Google, ByteDance’s TikTok, Snap Inc. and other social-media firms to halt thousands of lawsuits accusing them of engineering addictive products for minors. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the companies’ request to overturn a lower-court order was premature, noting that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provides a defense to liability but does not grant immunity from lawsuits.

The ruling allows more than 3,000 cases filed by states, municipalities, school districts and individuals to move forward in federal court. Plaintiffs allege that the platforms deliberately target young users, contributing to mental-health issues such as depression and anxiety. The cases have been centralized before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, where plaintiffs seek damages, penalties and restitution.

The court also denied Meta’s request to postpone a trial that began Wednesday, brought by 29 state attorneys general. That suit claims the company illegally collected children’s data, designed its services to keep youth engaged, and misled consumers about safety. Neither a Meta spokesperson nor the plaintiffs’ lead attorneys responded to requests for comment.

The litigation follows a March jury verdict in Los Angeles that found Meta and Google negligent for designing platforms that harm young people, awarding $6 million to a plaintiff who said she became addicted to Instagram and YouTube as a child. In a separate state-court case, a New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million for misleading consumers, and a judge later added $567 million and mandated youth-safety measures. Both companies have indicated they will appeal those judgments.