San Francisco: A US appeals court has allowed more than 3,000 lawsuits against major social media companies to move forward, rejecting an attempt by Meta, Google, TikTok and other technology firms to stop the cases at an early stage.
The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled that the companies had appealed too early after a lower court allowed the lawsuits to proceed. The cases allege that social media platforms were deliberately designed to encourage addictive use among children and teenagers, contributing to concerns over depression, anxiety, body-image problems and other mental health issues.
Companies sought protection under Section 230
The companies, including Meta, Alphabet’s Google, ByteDance’s TikTok and Snap’s Snapchat, had argued that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act protected them from the lawsuits.
Section 230 generally provides online platforms with protection from liability for content created and posted by users. The companies argued that this protection should also prevent claims alleging that they failed to warn users about the potentially addictive nature of their platforms.
The appeals court disagreed with the timing of the challenge. It said Section 230 provides a defence against liability rather than complete immunity from being sued, meaning the companies could not immediately appeal the lower court’s decision.
The ruling does not determine whether the allegations against the companies are true. Instead, it allows the legal proceedings to continue so the claims can be examined through the normal court process.
Meta faces separate youth safety trial
The court also rejected Meta’s attempt to postpone a separate trial involving 29 US state attorneys general.
The states allege that Meta illegally collected and used children’s data, designed Facebook and Instagram to keep young users engaged and misled consumers about the safety of its services. The trial is scheduled to begin on Wednesday.
The development comes days after a New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay $567 million into a state fund for teen mental health prevention and treatment. The amount came in addition to an earlier $375 million jury award, taking the combined penalty to $942 million in that case. Meta has said it will appeal.
Growing legal pressure on technology firms
The latest federal cases have been brought by parents, individuals, schools, municipalities and state authorities. More than 3,000 federal cases have been consolidated before US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California.
Hundreds of additional cases are also pending in state courts. Around 3,300 similar lawsuits are part of a consolidated proceeding in California state court.
Earlier this year, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google negligent in a case involving a young woman who said she became addicted to Instagram and YouTube as a child. The jury awarded her $6 million.
Meta and Google have denied the allegations and said they would appeal adverse decisions.
The growing litigation could have implications beyond financial penalties. If courts ultimately find that certain platform designs contributed to harm among young users, technology companies could face greater pressure to change features, strengthen age protections and reconsider how their products are designed for children and teenagers.
The cases therefore represent a wider debate about where responsibility lies when digital platforms become deeply embedded in young people’s daily lives.