Jury Selection Begins in Major Federal Trial Against Meta Over Youth Harm Claims
A federal jury began selection Wednesday in Oakland, California for a landmark trial brought by four states against Meta over allegations that its platforms harm children's mental health and illegally collect data from minors without parental consent.
Trial Overview
Jury selection began Wednesday in Meta's federal trial over claims its platforms have harmed youth mental health and track children in violation of federal law. The trial scheduled to begin next week is expected to last six to eight weeks. This represents one of the most significant legal challenges facing the social media giant in the youth protection landscape.
The Core Claims
The 2023 lawsuit, filed in federal court in Oakland, California, claims that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents' consent, in violation of federal law. The suit points to features like infinite scrolling and push notifications, alleging they were designed to get young users engaged on the platform as long as possible. Meta faces 29 states in the federal multidistrict lawsuit filed in 2023, but the Oakland trial will only include the first four — California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey.
Broader Legal Context
The trial is the latest in an avalanche of lawsuits against Meta Platforms and other social media companies including Google's YouTube, TikTok and Snap, over claims their platforms harm young people, illegally collect their data and are deliberately designed to addict them. Meta has faced significant financial consequences in related proceedings. Last week, a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $567 million to address harms to young people from its platforms in the second phase of a landmark trial. The penalty is in addition to the $375 million in civil penalties that jurors ordered against Meta in March after determining the company knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its platforms.
Meta's Response
A Meta spokesperson said, "We strongly disagree with these allegations and are confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people." The company faces an uphill battle after recent jury verdicts in other jurisdictions, signaling growing legal and reputational risks.