Meta is pushing back against a pair of verdicts that awarded plaintiffs hundreds of millions. The company has vowed to appeal the New Mexico and California rulings, and has already taken countermeasures against attorneys looking to recruit plaintiffs on the very social media platforms that they're looking to fight.
In New Mexico, a jury found Meta liable for misleading customers about the safety of its platforms. The New Mexico Department of Justice celebrated the victory, which made the southwestern state the first in the country to score that kind of legal win. The jury in New Mexico ordered Meta to pay $5,000 per violation, totaling $375 million in civil penalties.
The California case was focused on a 20-year-old California woman, identified as K.G.M., who alleged the platforms fueled addictive use as a minor and contributed to her depression and suicidal thoughts through their engagement-driven design. In that instance, Meta was ordered to pay a total of $4.2 million.
