Meta faces federal trial as 29 states seek $1.4T over youth addiction claims

Trial opens in Oakland

A federal civil trial against Meta opened on Wednesday, 12 August 2026, at the federal courthouse in Oakland, California, with the selection of eight jurors. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who presided over the high-profile trial between Elon Musk and the creators of ChatGPT in the spring, will determine any penalties and remedial measures. She questioned prospective jurors about their use of Facebook and Instagram, their children's accounts, and their opinions of Mark Zuckerberg. Some were asked whether they had signed up before age 13 without their parents' knowledge and whether they had experienced psychological problems. One juror compared the serotonin rush from scrolling anxiety-inducing content to cocaine, while another said the apps are designed to "extract value" from people. Opening arguments are scheduled for 18 August, with hearings expected to run approximately six weeks through the end of September. The jury will serve only an advisory role.

Coalition of 29 states

Attorneys general of California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are leading the case on behalf of 29 states that have been suing Meta since 2023. The plaintiffs accuse Meta of deliberately designing Instagram and Facebook to be addictive for minors, violating state consumer protection laws and the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). Specific features under scrutiny include infinite scroll, nighttime notifications, and likes. The legal strategy targets the design of the applications rather than user-posted content, circumventing the Section 230 immunity that has long shielded tech platforms. On Monday, a federal appeals court in San Francisco rejected Meta's emergency appeal to suspend the proceedings, Bloomberg reported. The case stems from the "Facebook Files," thousands of internal documents leaked by former Meta employee Frances Haugen showing the company was aware of mental health risks to adolescents while publicly denying them.

Tobacco analogy and potential penalties

Vincent Joralemon, a legal scholar at the University of California, Berkeley's Center for Law and Technology, drew a parallel with the 1990s tobacco industry lawsuits that resulted in record payouts and advertising restrictions targeting minors.

“This really resembles the tobacco industry trials of the 1990s.”

The states seek up to $1,400 billion in penalties, a figure close to Meta's market capitalization. In July, Judge Gonzalez Rogers called this estimate "unreasonable" while dismissing Meta's counter-estimate of $4 million as "not even a slap on the hand," per legal outlet Law360. Joralemon identified the principal threat as reputational damage and the obligation to fundamentally modify its products.

Prior convictions and Zuckerberg's testimony

Meta has already been convicted twice in 2026. In March, a Los Angeles jury ordered Meta to pay $6 million to a teenager, jointly with YouTube. Last week, a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $567 million and to change how its platforms operate for minors in that state, according to RFI. Le Temps reported the New Mexico figure as nearly $1 billion in fines and reparations. Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify at the current trial, his second appearance before a jury in six months. His earlier testimony in Los Angeles was judged unconvincing.

Meta's defense

A Meta spokesperson told AFP the company is "confident" in its record on teen online safety and promised to "defend against accusations that distort the facts." Meta plans to argue that youth mental health cannot be attributed to a single application and that "problematic use" of social media is not a medically recognized addiction. The broader legal front against Meta includes thousands of citizens, 1,200 school districts, and 29 states, with lawsuits filed at every level of the US judicial system.