Social Media Lawsuit Lawyer
Harding Mazzotti, LLP is investigating cases on behalf of adolescents and teens who became addicted to social media and suffered damaging mental health effects.
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Why Are Lawsuits Targeting Instagram, Facebook, And Other Social Media?
Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen said that of the thousands of pages of internal documents she leaked, “the most shocking disclosure was the extent to which Facebook knew its products, Instagram in particular, were harming our children and chose to do nothing about it.”
As the rates of social media use increased among children and young adults over the last decade, unfortunately, the rates of self- harm within this same population have also increased in correlation with such use. The whistleblower alleged that rising rates of self-harm, suicidality, and eating disorders, even in children as young as 10 years of age, are harms Facebook (now known as Meta) was aware of.
The tech giant is alleged to have used addictive psychological tactics to increase adolescent, teen, and young adult usage despite these trends; thus, the well-being of children and teens was disregarded in favor of growth and profits.
The attorneys at Harding Mazzotti, LLP are investigating these cases to support the families who were impacted as they seek justice.
2026 Social Media Lawsuit Updates
April 1, 2026: Following U.S. Social Media Trial Verdict, France Will Vote on Restricting Youth Social Media Use
In the wake of the March 2026 Social Media Addiction trial verdict in the United States, more countries have been inspired to take steps to protect children and teens. For instance, senators in France will soon vote on a proposal to ban children under 15 from using certain forms of social media. This proposal is under consideration following reports of a global rise in claims that social media use among youth is harming their mental health. This follows actions taken in the United States by states like New York under the Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act (S4505/A5346), which requires social media platforms to display warning labels about the potential mental health risks of addictive features for users under 18.
March 26, 2026: Meta and YouTube Ordered to Pay a Combined $6M to Plaintiff
The California jury that awarded a young woman $3 million in compensatory damages in her social media addiction lawsuit has now determined the amount of additional punitive damages she will receive. Meta has been ordered to pay $4.2 million in compensatory and punitive damages, while YouTube is ordered to pay $1.8 million. That means the plaintiff was granted $6 million total in her historic social media claim. This was the first bellwether trial in the MDL for individuals and school districts alleging mental health harms from social media use.
March 25, 2026: Social Media Companies Ordered to Pay $3M to Plaintiff in Federal Trial
A Los Angeles federal court jury ordered Meta and YouTube/Google to pay a combined total of $3 million to a woman who claimed social media negatively affected her mental health. This marks the first bellwether trial in the social media MDL. According to lawsuits filed as part of this litigation, social media corporations should be held liable for any injury they commit to children’s mental health. Snap and TikTok (ByteDance) were previously included as defendants in the first trial, but those businesses reached a settlement before the trial.
The woman who filed the claim alleged that her compulsive usage of social media as a minor caused her to experience anxiety and depression. The jury determined that Meta’s and Google’s practices should result in punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages, which would require the companies to pay the plaintiff an additional sum of money. The jury ordered that Google pay 30% of the $3 million and Meta pay 70%. There will be more bellwether trials in this litigation later this year.
March 24, 2026: Meta Ordered to Pay $375M for Harms to Children’s Mental Health and Safety
A New Mexico jury found that Meta knowingly damaged children’s mental health and ordered the social media giant to pay $375 million. The Attorney General of New Mexico filed the action (State of New Mexico v. Meta Platforms, Inc.), and the trial lasted seven weeks. Prosecutors claimed that Meta employees were aware that children were being sexually exploited on the company’s social media platforms. The prosecution also claimed that Meta had engaged in “unconscionable” trade practices and unfairly exploited children, and the jury agreed, concluding that Meta breached the Unfair Practices Act of New Mexico.
May 2026 will see the hearing of another case that New Mexico filed against Meta. That case claims that Meta is a public nuisance, and that its platforms require reforms to better safeguard children.
March 11, 2026: Defendants Rest Their Case in First Bellwether Trial
Social Media litigation’s first bellwether trial is nearing its conclusion. The defendants, including Meta, called ten witnesses before resting their case on March 11. The plaintiff’s attorneys will have up to an hour to cross-examine the defendants’ witnesses in accordance with the judge’s orders, and closing arguments will not count against either side’s time limit. On March 12, 2026, closing arguments are scheduled to start. Other cases in this action will be greatly impacted by the verdict of this trial. MDL -3047 IN RE: Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation has 2,407 pending lawsuits as of March 2, 2026.
February 26, 2026: Plaintiff Testifies in First Social Media MDL Trial
The young woman who is suing multiple social media corporations testified in the first Bellwether trial in a consolidated federal MDL. This plaintiff and more than 2,000 others have filed lawsuits against social media corporations, accusing them of creating addictive platforms and failing to provide adequate protections for young users. According to public reports, the woman testified that she had been using social media since age six, and that her use of the platforms grew to be compulsive and affected her mental health to the extent that she began self-harming at the age of ten. Her therapist also testified, outlining what the young woman revealed about her social media use, mental health, and family life during her sessions.
February 18, 2026: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg Testifies in Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s CEO, was questioned as a witness in a federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) involving lawsuits alleging mental health problems caused by social media addiction. Zuckerberg had to respond to a variety of questions on the safety of his social media platforms, as well as whether Meta had an objective of encouraging youth engagement and possible tactics for doing so. He also responded to inquiries regarding the availability of “plastic surgery” filters used by tweens and teens. Meta asserts that it is proactive in terms of safeguards and does not allow minors under the age of 14 on the platform.
February 10, 2026: Trial Begins in Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
The first bellwether trial for the social media addiction MDL is now in progress. The plaintiff sued four social media corporations, two of which settled days before the trial began. The plaintiff claims that her mental health has suffered as a result of an addiction to social media sites such as Instagram and YouTube. Her attorneys highlighted internal emails and research indicating that the corporations were aware that their platforms may have a detrimental impact on children’s mental health. The plaintiff’s attorneys claim that the firms could (and should) have done more to protect minor users like the plaintiff. The defendant corporations dispute liability. The trial is scheduled to take several weeks, during which additional evidence may be presented.
February 2026: Some Social Media Companies Settle, Others Prepare for Trial
TikTok and Snapchat have settled one of the social media addiction claims filed against them prior to the first bellwether trial. However, Meta’s and Google’s lawsuits remain pending.
January 15, 2026: Hawai’i Sues Social Media Platforms
The state of Hawai’i has joined over a dozen other state governments in suing social media giants for alleged harm to children and teenagers. The State of Hawai’i contends in its case that TikTok is designed to be addicting for children and teens. The legal documents also say that TikTok lacks adequate age verification mechanisms to prevent minor users from seeing explicit, unsafe, or inappropriate content. According to public reports, children and adolescents face a significant prevalence of mental health issues, and many believe that social media corporations are to blame due to how the apps are designed.
As two of the most popular social networks, Facebook and Instagram have more than 2 billion combined users worldwide. An estimated nine out of 10 teens report having used social media. A 2018 survey by Pew Research Center indicated 45% of high school students said they are online “almost constantly,” while another 44% reported being online “several times a day.”
In October 2021, Frances Haugen, a former Facebook data scientist turned whistleblower, disclosed to the United States Congress that the social media company was aware that its algorithm, designed to increase and lengthen user engagement, could have detrimental effects on certain individuals, including children and teens. She claimed the company had the ability to do more to prioritize the well-being of children, but the company’s profits came first.
A Wall Street Journal investigation revealed documents from Facebook including an internal presentation that stated, “We make body image issues worse for one in three teen girls.” The presentation included and summarized research about the experiences and issues teen girls faced after using Facebook, establishing the company’s awareness of these statistics.
The report also revealed a March 2020 slide presentation of research that was posted internally at Facebook: “Thirty-two percent of teen girls said that when they felt bad about their bodies, Instagram made them feel worse.” The cited research stated, “Comparisons on Instagram can change how young women view and describe themselves.”
Additionally, in 2019, Current Opinion in Psychiatry published the study, “Social media, internet use and suicide attempts in adolescents” which concluded the following after reviewing multiple social media platforms: “Current evidence suggests that excessive or ‘problematic’ use of social media/internet does impact suicide risk, specifically increasing the risk of suicide attempts.”
The International Journal of Eating Disorders also published a 2019 study involving nearly 1,000 children averaging 13 years of age and reported the following: “A clear pattern of association was found between [social media] usage and [disordered eating] cognitions and behaviors with this exploratory study confirming that these relationships occur at younger-age than previously investigated.”
Facebook co-founder, Sean Parker, told Axios in a 2017 interview, “God only knows what it’s doing to our children’s brains.”
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Social Media Lawsuit – Contact A Lawyer Today
Harding Mazzotti, LLP is reviewing claims that multiple social media platforms were deliberately designed without regard to the safety of children.
If you or your child became addicted to social media and suffered damaging mental health effects that resulted in an attempt or death by suicide, other self-harm, or an eating disorder or body dysmorphia, our thoughts are with you and your family, and we are here to help.
Contact the social media attorneys at Harding Mazzotti, LLP at 1-800-LAW-1010 24/7 for a free case evaluation. We are here to talk through your family’s situation and any potential legal options you may have, with the understanding of the sensitive nature of your potential case.
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Social Media and Mental Health