New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a statement marking the first day of trial in a multistate lawsuit against Meta, alleging the company knowingly designed addictive features on Facebook and Instagram that harm children's mental health. The coalition alleges Meta illegally collected personal information from children under 13 without parental consent, violating COPPA, and seeks monetary penalties, restitution, and an injunction against deceptive practices.
The coalition of attorneys general is asking the court to order Meta to stop deploying harmful and deceptive tactics that jeopardize young users' mental health, and to require the company to follow laws designed to protect children and consumers. The lawsuit also seeks monetary penalties and restitution.
In-house teams should review consumer-facing terms of service and privacy policies to ensure they do not misrepresent platform safety for minors. Vendor agreements with social media and analytics providers should include representations on COPPA compliance and age-appropriate design. Data processing agreements should clarify whether any personal information is collected from children under 13 and whether verifiable parental consent is obtained. Indemnification clauses should cover regulatory claims related to addictive design or deceptive practices. Review insurance policies for coverage of regulatory defense costs.
Entity
Meta Platforms, Inc.
Industry
Social MediaOfficial Press Release
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/attorney-general-james-releases-statement-start-trial-against-meta
attorney general james and multistate coalition sue meta har
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2023/attorney-general-james-and-multistate-coalition-sue-meta-harming-youth
New York Attorney General Enforcement Page
https://ag.ny.gov/press-releases
"trial against Meta for harming young people"
"illegally collected personal information from children under 13 without their parents’ consent"
"Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act"
"seeks monetary penalties and restitution"
"August 18, 2026"
$1.0B
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton secured a historic settlement with Meta Platforms, Inc. requiring Meta to pay over $1 billion and implement significant new safeguards to protect children online. The settlement includes stricter age-assurance measures, a daily two-hour limit for teen users, default disabling of notifications during school hours, hidden likes/reactions, and a nighttime access mode restricting features for children.
$17.1B
Attorney General James and a bipartisan coalition of 50 other attorneys general secured a landmark settlement with Meta Platforms, Inc. (Meta) worth up to $17.1 billion to address the company's harmful and addictive features targeting minors on Facebook and Instagram. The settlement requires Meta to implement significant changes, including age verification, time limits for minors, restrictions on notifications, and options to opt out of algorithmic feeds, along with monetary payments to states for mental health and education programs.
$353.0M
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced a landmark $17 billion multistate settlement with Meta joined by 52 states and U.S. territories, resolving claims that Meta deceived the public about addictive design features harming youth mental health and shared Facebook users' private information with third parties before the 2016 election. Virginia is guaranteed $353 million (with an additional $11 million for the data-sharing claims, bringing its total to $364 million). Meta must implement sweeping child-safety reforms on Instagram and Facebook, including age verification, daily time limits, and 'check in breaks,' with implementation and efficacy regularly assessed by an independent auditor.
A bipartisan coalition of 33 state attorneys general, led by Minnesota AG Keith Ellison, began trial against Meta Platforms, Inc., alleging the company knowingly designed and deployed harmful features on Facebook and Instagram that drive children and teens to use the platforms compulsively, while falsely assuring parents and the public that its platforms were safe for young users. The states also allege Meta illegally collected personal information from children under 13 without parental consent, violating COPPA. The trial opened before Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, with the states seeking monetary penalties and injunctive relief.
A bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general led by New Jersey, California, Colorado, and Kentucky is taking Meta Platforms, Inc. to trial, alleging that Meta designed addictive features on Instagram and Facebook that harm minors' mental health, illegally collected data from children under 13 without the required protections under COPPA, and misled users about platform safety. Opening arguments begin August 18, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. No monetary penalty or final remedy has yet been imposed.
Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones announced a court ruling denying Meta Platforms, Inc.'s motion for summary judgment in a lawsuit alleging Meta designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children and misled parents. The court allowed claims under COPPA and the Virginia Consumer Protection Act to proceed to trial, scheduled for August 2026.