Overview
- Meta is removing hundreds of Facebook and Instagram ads placed by trial lawyers to recruit clients for social‑media addiction lawsuits, according to a company statement.
- The move follows recent jury verdicts that found Meta and Google negligent in their app designs in a California case and a separate New Mexico jury ruling that imposed $375 million on Meta.
- Plaintiffs say features such as infinite scroll, autoplay recommendations, push alerts, and beauty filters were built to keep kids engaged, and trial evidence included internal emails flagging risks and under‑13 users on the platforms.
- National firms including Morgan & Morgan bought ads across Meta apps to sign up clients, and school districts are filing cases too, with more trials scheduled such as a federal case in Oakland.
- Meta and Google plan to appeal, setting up tests of Section 230’s content immunity and First Amendment arguments that recommendation algorithms count as protected speech.