Overview
- Closing arguments concluded, and jurors now must decide whether Meta and YouTube were a substantial factor in the plaintiff’s harms, with liability determined separately for each company.
- Only nine of 12 jurors need to agree on each count, and the panel can also set damages if it finds either platform liable.
- The plaintiff alleges design features such as infinite scroll, autoplay and notifications fostered compulsive use that worsened depression and suicidal thoughts beginning in childhood.
- Meta argues her difficulties predated social media use and notes no therapist identified the platforms as the cause, while YouTube disputes being a social network and likens its service to television.
- TikTok and Snap settled before trial, and testimony included executives such as Mark Zuckerberg, Adam Mosseri and Cristos Goodrow, underscoring the case’s potential to influence broader design-based liability claims beyond Section 230 defenses.