Social Media Harm Verdicts

Current social media addiction litigation is proceeding through state court and federal multidistrict litigation (MDL). Many lawsuits involve similar allegations concerning youth mental health and compulsive platform use. But, cases are moving through several legal tracks and may reach different verdicts, rulings and settlements.

State-level proceedings against social media companies in California are known as Judicial Council Coordinated Proceeding (JCCP) No. 5255. It involves claims against defendants Meta (Facebook and Instagram), TikTok, Snapchat and Google (YouTube). Motley Rice was a part of the first trial counsel team.

Separate federal proceedings are also pending through In re: Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 3047. It is centralized in the Northern District of California before Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers. As of June 2026, the MDL included 2,664 pending actions.

The MDL includes a range of claims:

• Individual claims: Typically, personal injury or wrongful death. Filed by people who experienced mental health harms as minors from using social media apps.
• School district claims: Claiming social media platforms are responsible for a youth mental health crisis. This led to schools incurring costs to manage and respond to the crisis.
• State claims: Filed by attorneys general for fostering addictive use in minors across the constituency.

In addition, a number of state Attorneys General have filed individual suits against social media companies in their state courts.

Motley Rice is actively representing individuals, school districts, and state attorneys general in these lawsuits.

March 2026 verdict in California JCCP proceedings

In January 2026, the first California JCCP trial against defendants Meta (Facebook and Instagram) and Google (YouTube) began in Los Angeles County Superior Court. TikTok and Snapchat settled in the litigation prior to the trial beginning. Motley Rice was part of the trial counsel team in the proceedings. The lawsuit alleged that the companies’ use of engagement-driven design features, recommendation algorithms and compulsive-use mechanics contributed to worsening mental health symptoms involving a young user.

On March 25, 2026, a Los Angeles jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. It is the first major social media addiction verdict involving youth mental health allegations. The jury found Meta and Google liable for the plaintiff’s mental health harms tied to Instagram and YouTube use. The jury awarded approximately $6 million in damages.

The verdict allocated approximately 70% of liability to Meta and 30% to Google. TikTok and Snapchat settled before the verdict was reached.

Bellwether developments in federal MDL

MDL No. 3047 includes claims brought by parents, young adults, school districts, local governments and sovereign tribal governments involving alleged youth mental health harms tied to social media use.

Upcoming bellwether proceedings are expected to help shape how future social media claims will be evaluated in the federal social media MDL. Issues these proceedings will examine include damages, platform liability theories and the use of internal company documents and executive testimony.

Motley Rice attorney Previn Warren serves as co-lead counsel for the MDL overall.

March 2026 New Mexico Meta verdict

In March 2026, a New Mexico jury found Meta liable in a lawsuit brought by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez involving Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Motley Rice represented the state in the lawsuit and served as outside trial counsel through the trial. Attorneys Linda Singer, Don Migliori and David Ackerman were lead trial counsel.

The case focused on allegations that Meta misled consumers about youth safety risks associated with its platforms, including that Meta’s features promoted distribution of child sexual abuse content and connected young users with potential sexual predators. The verdict is the first major state attorney general verdict involving youth safety claims against a major social media company. The jury found that Meta had committed 75,000 violations of the New Mexico Unfair Trade Practices statute and awarded the maximum civil penalty: $375,000,000.

The ruling may influence other lawsuits brought by state attorneys general against social media companies. These include pending litigation filed by states such as Arkansas, Texas and Utah involving youth safety, platform design, parental controls and data practices.

Recent social media lawsuit verdicts and trial developments may influence how future claims are evaluated across state and federal courts. The March 2026 California JCCP verdict, the New Mexico attorney general verdict against Meta and upcoming MDL bellwether proceedings are likely to shape future litigation.

One significant legal issue moving forward is how courts apply Section 230 protections to claims involving recommendation algorithms, engagement-based platform features and other product design allegations rather than user-generated content alone.

Judge Carolyn Kuhl in the California JCCP proceedings and Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in MDL No. 3047 have both allowed these design-focused claims to proceed. Judge Bryan Biedscheid in New Mexico also rejected Meta’s attempts to invoke Section 230 to avoid liability in New Mexico.

Potential issues in future proceedings include:

• Compensatory damages for individuals and families
• Economic damages sought by school districts and public entities
• Claims involving recommendation algorithms and engagement-based features
• Parental controls, age verification and youth safety measures
• Potential injunctive relief involving platform changes or warning requirements
• Continued disputes involving Section 230 protections and platform liability theories

Additional social media lawsuit verdicts may emerge as legal proceedings continue through 2026.

Motley Rice represents clients in litigation involving alleged youth mental health harms tied to social media use. Our work includes participation in the California JCCP proceedings and MDL No. 3047. We represent individuals, school districts pursuing claims tied to compulsive social media use. We also represent state attorneys general in social media matters outside of the MDL. Motley Rice’s team continues to review claims involving depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self-harm and other alleged mental health harms associated with social media use during childhood and adolescence.

Read more about our work on social media lawsuits.