Meta has filed an appeal challenging a California jury's landmark verdict that found the company's platforms were designed to addict young users. According to Business Standard, lawyers representing Meta filed a notice of appeal Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, challenging the jury's determination that the company designed its platforms to hook young users without concern for their well-being. The case centered on 20-year-old Kaley, who said she became addicted to social media as a child and that it worsened her mental health struggles. The jury awarded her $3 million in damages and recommended an additional $3 million in punitive damages, with her lead attorney Mark Lanier expecting the appellate court to continue applying the law to affirm the verdict.
Meta Platforms revealed that four US states are seeking $1.4 trillion in penalties over allegations the company deliberately designed its Facebook and Instagram platforms to keep young users addicted while misleading the public about their safety. According to Meta's court filing on Monday, the company put forward this figure in response to attorneys general's filings on how penalties should be calculated if the states prevailed at trial. The amount, which has not previously been disclosed and is close to Meta's market capitalization of around $1.5 trillion, comes ahead of an August trial in Oakland, California over the claims brought by California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey against the company. Meta said the amount was unsupported by the evidence and stated that "a sanction of that size has no analog in the history of consumer protection enforcement."
The states' filings are sealed, but at a court hearing in June, they said they were calculating the penalties by multiplying the number of violations by fine amounts set by state law. As reported by Meta, the number of violations is based on the estimated number of teens and young users affected by Meta's actions. The lawsuits, brought by 29 US states, accuse Meta of violating the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act by collecting children's data without proper parental consent and misleading consumers about the safety and addictiveness of Facebook and Instagram. Four states are also pursuing claims under their consumer protection laws, while another 14 states will have their claims heard separately next year. Representatives for the attorneys general did not immediately respond to requests for comment after the filing.
The trial in August before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will address all claims brought under the federal law, plus the four states' allegations that the company violated their state laws protecting consumers by misleading them about the safety of their platforms. Last month, Judge Rogers allowed the case to proceed, citing unresolved factual disputes over whether Meta's platforms were designed to be addictive and targeted at children. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has accused Meta of prioritising profits over child safety, promising to hold the company "fully accountable" for its role in the teen mental health crisis. A further 14 states have brought claims under their own laws, which will be heard at a separate trial in February. The case represents one of the most significant legal challenges facing the social media industry and could have major implications for how digital platforms are regulated.
Meta faces this challenge as part of a broader wave of litigation affecting major social media companies. Meta, Snapchat-parent Snap Inc., YouTube-parent Alphabet Inc., and TikTok-parent ByteDance are facing thousands of similar lawsuits in federal and state courts over claims their platforms were designed to be addictive to children and teenagers. New Mexico was the first state to go to trial on such claims, with a jury awarding it $375 million in March; a second phase of that case, seeking further damages and a court order, is still being weighed by the judge. Meta has denied the broader allegations, saying the states have no evidence it misled consumers, and arguing that "social media addiction" is not an established psychiatric diagnosis. Tech companies like Meta and YouTube are shielded from legal responsibility for content posted by third parties based on Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, but plaintiffs focused on platform design features like "infinite scroll" and autoplay functions to get around these protections.
Meta stock closed near $600 on July 6, up almost 3% on the day, with investors treating the $1.4 trillion figure as an opening bid rather than a likely outcome. However, the shares have dropped about 10% in 2026, and large funds continue rotating into Google stock. The stock previously saw $175 billion wiped off its market capitalization in one April session after a $145 billion AI spending outlook rattled shareholders. Polymarket traders are also betting on rising tech layoffs as Meta employee morale craters. New Mexico offers a warning, having ordered Meta to pay $375 million in March for misleading consumers about child safety, with a judge currently weighing the second portion of the state's case. Meta faces additional challenges including a separate class action over data sharing, keeping its courtroom calendar full into 2027.
