A 15-year-old Florida teen has dropped his lawsuit against Meta, ending a closely watched legal battle in which Meta's social media platforms were described as so addictive that it contributed to mental health problems.
The decision was made just days before the case was to go to trial in Los Angeles. The withdrawal means Meta’s trial will no longer take place.
The teen, identified in court filings by the initials R.K.C., had filed the lawsuit after saying he started using social media at around the age of eight. His legal claims initially included Meta’s Instagram, Google-owned YouTube, Snap’s Snapchat and ByteDance’s TikTok.
The teenager claims such platforms were designed to support prolonged, compulsive use, he said in court documents. He claimed his social media use had resulted in depression, anxiety and other mental health problems.
The case had already been narrowed before Meta became the only remaining defendant. YouTube and TikTok reached confidential settlements with the teenager in June, while Snap also reached a settlement, according to reports. The details of those agreements have not been publicly disclosed.
With the other companies no longer involved in the trial, Meta's case was expected to be another closely watched test of claims that major technology companies designed products with features that could encourage excessive use among young people.
But the teenager’s lawyers said their client decided to withdraw the claims after considering the strain of a long trial. In a statement, his lawyers said the litigation had achieved an overall successful result through the earlier settlements and that the teenager wanted to avoid a difficult, weeks-long courtroom battle.
They said the teenager was now interested in recovering, therapy and the aspiration of returning to a normal life.
Meta said the teenager withdrew the lawsuit without any payment from the company. The social media company defended itself by saying the claims against it were unfounded and that it would continue to fight against what it called “unfounded lawsuits.”
The case was part of a much broader legal problem facing big social media companies in the U.S. Some 3,300 lawsuits are pending in California state court, claiming that social media platforms were designed in ways that could be addictive or harmful to children and teenagers. Thousands of other cases are also moving through federal court.
The lawsuits have also raised questions about technology companies’ responsibility for the design of their platforms, including recommendation systems, endless scrolling, notifications and autoplay.
The companies involved have often denied that their products were purposefully designed to harm young users. Family and school officials and lawmakers are also increasingly concerned about the impact of social media on children and teenagers.
While R.K.C.’s case against Meta will not go to trial, the broader legal fight is far from finished. There are still many cases under way and courts in the US will continue to hear about platform design and youth safety and mental health.
The withdrawal thus ends one major case but doesn’t settle the larger legal question of whether social media companies can be held accountable for alleged harms associated with the design and use of their platforms.
