Social Media Addiction Lawsuit (MDL 3047): Meta, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube

The lawsuits argue that social media apps were designed like addictive products, and that the companies knew teens were especially vulnerable. They focus on design features rather than on specific posts: endless scrolling feeds, autoplay, algorithmic recommendations that push extreme content, streaks and rewards, push notifications at night, appearance-altering filters, and weak age checks and parental controls.

Meta (Instagram and Facebook)

Meta faces the most claims, including allegations that it studied harms to teen girls internally and did not warn users. State attorneys general also sued Meta over the same issues and over collecting data from children under 13.

TikTok

Claims center on the For You feed's recommendation algorithm, time spent, and content that plaintiffs say encourages disordered eating and self-harm.

Snap (Snapchat)

Claims cite Snapstreaks, disappearing messages, and features plaintiffs say kept teens engaged and exposed them to harmful contacts.

YouTube

Claims focus on autoplay and recommendations, especially for younger users.

The federal cases are consolidated as In re Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 3047, No. 4:22-md-03047-YGR. A parallel group of California state cases is coordinated as JCCP 5255 in Los Angeles Superior Court before Judge Carolyn Kuhl.

On March 25, 2026, a Los Angeles jury in the first JCCP 5255 bellwether found Meta and YouTube liable for negligence and failure to warn and awarded the plaintiff $6 million, including punitive damages. Snap and TikTok had settled with that plaintiff before trial. On June 9, 2026, Judge Kuhl denied Meta's and YouTube's motions for a new trial and for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, finding the case was about product design, not third-party content protected by Section 230.

In the federal MDL, the first school district bellwether trial, Breathitt County School District (Kentucky), was set for June 15, 2026. Snap, TikTok, and YouTube settled in mid-May and Meta settled days before jury selection; local reporting put the combined value at about $27 million. A second JCCP personal injury trial set for July 2026 ended when the plaintiff settled with Google, TikTok, and Snap and dismissed his claims against Meta.

Government cases moved faster. On August 26, 2026, Meta announced a settlement with a bipartisan coalition of 51 attorneys general. Meta agreed to pay the states at least $12.1 billion over 10 years, rising to as much as $17.1 billion if other platforms adopt similar reforms, and to set default two-hour daily limits and overnight blocks for users under 18. The settlement is subject to court approval through a consent judgment. On September 25, 2026, TikTok agreed to pay Alabama at least $100 million, possibly up to $300 million if other states join, with similar teen limits.

None of these settlements pays individual families. Personal injury cases in the MDL continue, with about 3,210 pending as of September 2026.

Attorneys taking these cases generally look for the following:

• Age at first heavy use: most cases involve people who began using the platforms before turning 18. Many current claimants are still minors, with a parent filing on their behalf.
• A diagnosed injury: depression, anxiety, an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia, self-harm, suicidal ideation, a suicide attempt, or a death by suicide. Sleep disorders and body dysmorphia also appear in some cases.
• Treatment records: therapy, medication, hospitalization, or residential treatment that documents the condition.
• Compulsive use: hours per day over months or years, often on more than one platform.

Who probably does not qualify: adults whose use began after 18, people who used the apps heavily but have no diagnosis or treatment, and cases where the main harm came from another person, such as a predator, which is a different kind of claim. For those situations see our pages on Snapchat exploitation and Roblox and Discord exploitation. School districts and local governments file separate institutional claims.

Attorneys also look at how well records tie the injury to the platforms. Screen time reports, account data downloads that show late-night activity, and treatment notes that mention social media use are all helpful. A timeline showing that symptoms started or worsened after heavy use began, and improved when use stopped, is often the most persuasive evidence in these cases.

The single jury verdict so far awarded $6 million to one young woman, split between compensatory and punitive damages, with most of the fault assigned to Meta. That is one case, and it may still be appealed. It does not mean every claim is worth that amount.

In a mass tort, each claim is valued on the severity of the injury, the treatment needed, age, and how well records tie the injury to platform use. Cases involving death, suicide attempts, or long hospitalizations are valued far higher than those involving milder anxiety. If a global settlement comes, it will likely use a points or tier system. Our guide on class actions vs. mass torts explains why these cases work differently from a typical settlement. For more on the Meta settlement, see our Meta social media settlement page.

Plaintiffs bring product liability and negligence claims, treating the apps as products with defective designs and inadequate warnings. The main legal fight has been Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects platforms from liability for content posted by users.

Courts in both the MDL and the JCCP have drawn a line: claims that attack the platforms for hosting or publishing particular content are barred, but claims about the companies' own design choices, such as time limits, notifications, age verification, and failure to warn about addiction risks, can go forward. Judge Kuhl applied that line in upholding the March 2026 verdict.

State attorney general cases rely on consumer protection laws and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. Under COPPA, sites directed at children or with actual knowledge of users under 13 must get verifiable parental consent before collecting their personal information. Private individuals cannot sue under COPPA directly, which is why injury cases use negligence and product liability theories instead.

Injury claims are subject to each state's statute of limitations, typically 1 to 3 years for personal injury and about 2 years for wrongful death in many states.

• Minors: in most states the clock does not start until the injured person turns 18, which is why many claims are still timely. Some states have shorter limits or exceptions.
• Discovery rule: in many states the clock starts when the person knew or should have known the injury was connected to the platforms, which courts may tie to diagnosis or to public reporting about the risks.
• Wrongful death: deadlines usually run from the date of death and are often not paused for minors.

Because the MDL judge sets filing and discovery schedules, waiting can also make it harder to join the current process. There is no deadline for signing up to a class, because this is not a class action.

The August and September 2026 government settlements do not pay families, but they do change how the apps work for minors, and they show what design features regulators considered harmful.

Meta (Instagram and Facebook)

According to California Attorney General Rob Bonta, the proposed Meta consent judgment includes default daily time limits for minors, a block on overnight use that only a parent can lift, stronger parental supervision tools, age assurance measures to find users under 18 and children under 13, and an independent auditor to oversee compliance. California alone expects to receive $1.5 billion to $2.1 billion from the Meta settlement if the court approves it. The settlement still requires court approval through entry of a consent judgment.

TikTok (Alabama)

TikTok's Alabama settlement, announced September 25, 2026, mirrors many of Meta's terms: a two-hour daily limit for teens, restricted access from midnight to 6 a.m., notifications suspended during school hours, a ban on beauty filters for teens, and an option for a non-personalized feed. Alabama gets at least $100 million, and up to $300 million if 40 other attorneys general sign similar deals within a set period.

Why this matters for injury claims

Settlements with states generally do not release individual injury claims, so families can still pursue their own cases. The design changes can also be relevant evidence: if a company agreed that time limits or overnight blocks were needed, plaintiffs may argue those protections were feasible earlier. Companies will argue the opposite, that changes made in a settlement are not an admission of anything. How courts treat that argument will be decided case by case.

School districts and local governments

Many school districts have also filed claims seeking the costs of responding to student mental health problems. The Breathitt County settlement was the first test of those claims in the federal MDL.

1. Put safety first. If a child is in crisis, call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or 911.
2. Do not delete accounts. Download the account data from each platform and capture screen time reports before changing anything.
3. Collect treatment records. Ask providers for records covering diagnosis and treatment, and note the dates symptoms started.
4. Write a timeline. List when each app was first used, typical hours per day, and when behavior changed.
5. Talk to an attorney before signing anything. Settlements between states and platforms do not release individual injury claims, but other documents might.

A free case review takes about two minutes and can connect you with independent attorneys who handle social media injury cases. Related pages: TikTok lawsuits, video game addiction, and how MDLs work.