Overview
- A New Mexico judge set a $25 billion judgment on Wednesday after a jury found 26 corporate statements deceptive and more than 43 million violations of the state’s consumer protection law.
- The court calculated the award under a law that allows up to $5,000 per violation and ordered the judgment to accrue interest at 15 percent annually until paid.
- Attorney General Raúl Torrez said the money is to go to a state education fund but acknowledged an appeal by Meta could keep the funds tied up for months or years.
- New Mexico took the case to trial instead of joining a larger multistate settlement reached in August and the state’s prosecutors emphasized internal warnings and alleged systematic failures at Facebook.
- Meta has said it will appeal and argued the award is excessive and that the state did not prove individualized harm, a challenge that could reduce or delay the penalty and shape future consumer‑privacy enforcement.