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Opening Arguments Begin in Twin Trials Testing Big Tech’s Liability for Youth Harm

The cases test whether plaintiffs can hold platforms liable by targeting product design and algorithms rather than user content.

FILE - Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
Joann Bogard of Wadesville, Indiana, mother of Mason, 15, holds a vigil for children who have died due to alleged social media harms on February 5, 2026 at the Los Angeles Superior Courthouse, ahead of the landmark social media addiction trial.
Parents who lost children to alleged social media–related harms hold a vigil ahead of a social media addiction trial in Los Angeles on February 5, 2026.

Overview

  • Los Angeles jurors began hearing a bellwether case brought by a plaintiff identified as K.G.M. against Meta and YouTube, alleging addictive design features harmed her mental health, after TikTok and Snap settled earlier.
  • Jurors will weigh negligence in features such as infinite scroll, notifications and recommendations, and whether those design choices were a substantial factor in the plaintiff’s injuries, a posture aimed at sidestepping Section 230 defenses.
  • Executives including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Instagram head Adam Mosseri and YouTube CEO Neal Mohan are expected to be called as witnesses in a trial projected to run into March.
  • In Santa Fe, a separate New Mexico trial opened accusing Meta of facilitating child sexual exploitation, built on undercover decoy accounts and internal records that prosecutors say show large-scale targeting of minors, including a 2020 email estimating "~500k" daily victims in English markets.
  • Meta and YouTube deny the allegations and point to youth safety investments and parental controls, while outcomes in these proceedings could influence thousands of related lawsuits and potential product or policy changes later this year.