TikTok Lawsuits

The social media MDL grew to 3,824 pending actions.

There were 3,208 pending actions in the social media MDL.

The social media MDL grew to 3,137 pending actions.

TikTok agreed to confidential settlements resolving three personal injury claims. All three were scheduled to begin trial in Los Angeles Superior Court in October. Claims against the other defendants continue.

There were 2,893 pending actions in the social media MDL.

The social media MDL grew to 2,664 pending actions.

TikTok and others settled a suit brought by the Breathitt County School District in Kentucky. The suit was scheduled for June 2026 and was expected to be the first school district bellwether trial.

There were 2,527 pending actions in the social media MDL.

The social media MDL increased to 2,465 pending actions.

There are now 2,407 pending actions in the social media MDL.

The judge overseeing the TikTok MDL rejected the defendants’ request for summary judgment against Breathitt County School District. The district’s lawsuit, which is part of the social media MDL, will proceed. The trial is set to begin on June 15 in Oakland, California. The school district is in Kentucky. 

The social media MDL increased to 2,325 pending actions.

ByteDance reached a settlement the day before a lawsuit was set to begin in the California Superior Court of Los Angeles. The plaintiff alleged that TikTok, which is owned by ByteDance, has features that are deliberately designed to addict young users. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed. The trial will continue with Meta and YouTube as defendants. 
 

Snap avoided going to trial in a lawsuit alleging that its Snapchat platform is designed to be addictive to young users. Attorneys did not disclose the amount of the settlement. Snap still faces similar lawsuits, along with other social media companies.
 

The number of pending cases in the MDL reached 2,243.

Hawaii filed a lawsuit against ByteDance for allegedly creating features designed to be addictive to children and misleading the public about the risks. This lawsuit was filed in a state court in Hawaii. 
 

More plaintiffs filed social media lawsuits in November. There are now 2,191 pending actions in the MDL.

The number of plaintiffs in the social media mental health MDL is now 2,172, an increase of 119 from the previous month.

U.S. District Judge Peter Kang told ByteDance attorneys to turn over documents related to a social media influencer’s livestream from TikTok headquarters in May 2025. Eugenia Cooney, whose content revolves around her issues with anorexia nervosa, collapsed during the livestream. Judge Kang specifically wants documents discussing whether the company investigated whether the livestream affected the safety of young social media influencers.
 

New York City attorneys withdrew from a lawsuit consolidated in California state court and filed a case as part of a mass tort in federal court. The city’s attorneys seek compensation from social media companies. They allege that features of their apps violated the city’s negligence and public nuisance laws. The lawsuit explains that the city doesn’t have the resources to combat the mental health harms the defendants knowingly caused young users. New York City’s complaint alleges that social media companies failed to warn users of potential mental health risks. TikTok owner ByteDance is one of the social media companies included in the mass tort.
 

There are now 2,053 plaintiffs in the social media addiction MDL.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge ruled that expert testimony in a consolidated state lawsuit against social media companies does not violate Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl ruled that testimony must focus on social media app design rather than the uploaded user content to be admissible. She rejected defendants’ argument that the Sargon standard does not allow expert testimony. The Sargon standard requires that testimony must be based in science. TikTok owner ByteDance is among the defendants. 

Two Oklahoma Native American tribes joined the federal multidistrict litigation (MDL). They allege that social media companies like TikTok owner ByteDance knew their apps’ designs injured the mental health of young users.  Attorneys for the Chickasaw and Choctaw nations said social media companies’ negligence has placed extra burdens on their underfunded welfare and health programs.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys in the federal social media MDL accused defendants ByteDance of refusing to provide information about its relationship with a controversial TikTok influencer. Eugenia Cooney’s content often focuses on having the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. Plaintiffs’ attorneys want to clarify her position as a paid TikTok influencer promoted by the company. TikTok lawyers argue that the request came two months after the discovery process ended. Plaintiffs dispute that argument.

Defendants in a California state social media mass tort were not allowed to remove a plaintiff. They argued that Jaime Loach’s lawsuit fell outside the statute of limitations. They also said that news coverage should’ve warned her of the risks of social media addiction. Judge Kuhl ruled that Loach’s suspicion of the defendants’ wrongdoing was within the statute of limitations. She also said that a jury can decide if media reports were enough to warn Loach about potential mental health harms. Loach’s lawsuit is scheduled to be the third bellwether trial in the mass tort.  The plaintiff in this case is not represented by Motley Rice. 
 

There were 1,961 pending actions in the social media MDL as of Sept. 2.

There were 1,922 pending actions in the social media MDL as of August 1. The MDL includes claims against TikTok, as well as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and YouTube.

There were 1,867 pending actions in the social media MDL as of July 1.

A Minnesota state bill will require state residents to acknowledge a warning before they can access content on social media apps. Social media and some state Republicans lawmakers are objecting to the law, which is set to take effect in the summer of 2026. 

Six school districts and five personal injury cases have been selected for the bellwether trial pool in the social media harm MDL. Bellwether trials in an MDL help establish facts for other cases and could impact how future trials proceed.
 

The social media MDL grew to 1,814 pending actions.

A New York state court denied a motion to dismiss filed by ByteDance in a lawsuit filed by New York. The state has brought the suit over TikTok’s alleged harms to young people’s mental health. New York is one of 13 states suing TikTok over its alleged defective design.

In the social media MDL, there were 1,787 pending actions.

The parties discussed ongoing disputes over witness depositions, document production and data sharing during an MDL status conference held April 22, 2025. While some agreements are moving forward, others remain unresolved. The next Discovery Status Conference is scheduled to take place on June 12, 2025 with the next Case Management Conference scheduled to take place on June 13, 2025 before Judge Gonzalez Rogers.

There were 1,745 pending actions in the social media harm MDL. Nearly 300 individuals and school districts joined the social media MDL since early March, bringing the total pending actions to 1,745.

The Corpus Christi Independent School District joined more than 40 other school districts statewide in the social media MDL. The district previously added regulations for smartwatch and cellphone use during the school day. Students in Kindergarten through eighth grade can’t use their devices during the school day. High school students are only allowed to use cellphones during lunch and between classes.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter H. Kang ruled that the author of a memoir critical of Meta Platforms can testify in the MDL. Sarah Wynn-Williams worked at Meta from 2011 to 2017. She was the company’s director of public policy. Meta attempted to block her from testifying, arguing that her knowledge wasn’t relevant to personal injury and that plaintiffs waited too long to get her testimony.

Judge Gonzalez Rogers ruled that plaintiffs may continue with their legal theory of social media apps and sites as a public nuisance. The ruling is aimed at maintaining coordination among plaintiffs from different states. Granting defendants’ request for interlocutory appeal would cause the MDL to “quickly splinter and fragment.”

Describing Snapchat as a “digital open-air drug market,” a lawsuit filed by more than 60 families claims the app’s features expose children to drug dealers. While the suit is aimed at Snapchat, other social media companies could find that it weakens defenses built on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Lawyers for social media companies have used Section 230 to avoid being held liable for user-generated content.

Judge Gonzalez Rogers ruled that, what she refers to as “non-priority claims” can proceed. Non-priority claims include general negligence, loss of consortium, survival and wrongful death.

The social media harm MDL grew to 1,464 pending actions.

More cases continue to be added to the Adolescent Social Media Addiction MDL. There are now 1,246 pending actions, including those against TikTok.

A Nebraska judge allowed the state’s lawsuit against TikTok to proceed.  Attorneys for ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, argued  the state didn’t have jurisdiction to sue. The reason is statements about the appropriate age of users and content moderation weren’t specifically intended for Nebraskans. Judge Lori Maret found that ByteDance didn’t provide sufficient evidence to counter the state’s claims.

The White Mountain Apache Tribe filed a federal lawsuit in the Northern District of California against several social media companies, including TikTok parent company, ByteDance. The tribe claims that social media companies are contributing to mental health crises among its youth. The lawsuit's allegations also fall under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO.

The social media harm MDL climbed to 974 pending actions as of January 2.

Utah 3rd District Judge Coral Sanchez ruled that redacted info in the state’s complaint should be made public. Attorneys for Utah allege that the redacted text shows that TikTok knew the platform’s features could allow sexual exploitation of minors and other illegal activities.

More actions have been filed against ByteDance and other social media organizations in the social media harm MDL. 815 lawsuits were active as of December 2, 2024.

Judge Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta Platforms, is not personally liable in lawsuits alleging  social media companies deliberately addicted children to social media. The judge didn’t find enough specific evidence to establish his personal liability.

U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that lawsuits filed by school districts could proceed as part of MDL 3047 against social media companies.

School districts have filed suits alleging that the design of social media apps has caused mental health harm to students in the schools’ communities. These mental health issues have led to disruptions throughout schools thatand  have increased costs as districts try to help students navigate the negative influence of social media.

In October 2024, 13 states filed lawsuits against TikTok. The lawsuits claim the app negatively impacts children’s mental health. The state attorneys general who filed the lawsuit argue that TikTok fosters social media addiction by repeatedly rapidly  exposing children to short-form videos.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against TikTok. The lawsuit alleges the platform doesn’t do enough to protect children. The lawsuit also claims the company violated the Securing Children Online through Parental Empowerment Act (SCOPE).

Under TikTok’s current model, parents can use the “family pairing” system to oversee their children’s accounts. The lawsuit alleges this system doesn’t provide enough secure ways for parents to verify their identities. It also requires minors to approve the family pairing system on their account. TikTok plans to fight these allegations.

The social media MDL includes 594 pending actions. In January 2024, there were 393 clients. These numbers include lawsuits against Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube in addition to TikTok.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia reinstated a lawsuit filed by a mother after her child died following a challenge that was popular on the app. The Court deviated from similar rulings, saying that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act does not apply to how TikTok recommends content. While this may allow for similar claims to be filed in the Third Circuit, it is not clear what impact, if any, it will have on the social media MDL. Motley Rice does not represent the plaintiff in this Third Circuit case.

TikTok had petitioned the Court to receive full forensic images of all devices used by 12 plaintiffs in bellwether trials for the social media MDL. In a hearing with U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter H. Kang, the Court ruled against TikTok’s motion. The decision found that TikTok had failed to show a compelling enough interest to overcome the plaintiffs’ right to privacy.

Judge Gonzalez Rogers partially rejected the Defendants’ motion to dismiss all of the claims in the social media MDL. The Defendants had argued that they had immunity under both the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment and Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996. Judge Gonzales Rodgers held that Section 230 and the First Amendment barred claims against certain aspects of the apps, she refused to dismiss all of the Plaintiffs’ claims. Importantly, she also allowed the entirety of the Plaintiffs’ failure to warn claim to proceed.

Following the first case management conference, Motley Rice attorney Previn Warren was appointed as co-lead counsel for the social media MDL.

A number of federal claims against social media platforms were consolidated into an MDL in the Northern District of California.