Judge Sides with Attorney General Jackson in Meta Case; Lawsuit Alleging the Company Harmed Children to Go to Trial

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 1, 2026
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RALEIGH- A federal judge will allow Attorney General Jeff Jackson's bipartisan lawsuit against Meta to go to trial after Meta tried to have the case thrown out. The lawsuit alleges that the tech company designed its social media platforms to get more kids to use the apps for longer periods of time, all while deceiving the public about the apps' harms. The lawsuit also claims that Meta's collection of data from children under 13 violated federal privacy law.

"Meta designed their social media platforms to be addictive and misled the public about them being safe for kids. Then, they asked the court to let them off the hook," said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. "The judge said no. We'll see Meta in court."

The North Carolina Department of Justice, along with a bipartisan coalition of 29 states, sued Meta in 2023 in United States federal district court in California where it is based. The lawsuit accuses Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, of designing its social media platforms to be addictive to children and misleading the public by claiming that the platforms were safe for young people to use.

Meta tried to have the case thrown out by asking for summary judgment on all claims. On Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers denied Meta's motion and ruled that the states have presented enough evidence to go to trial.

In her order, Judge Gonzalez Rogers wrote that the states presented evidence that:

• "Meta employees have authored internal documents indicating that the platforms are addictive."

• "[A]t least some employees believed the platforms cultivated compulsive use to maximize engagement."

• Executives were included in conversations about the platforms' potential to "induce compulsive use by teens."

Additionally, the judge ruled that the states can continue to seek to have Meta give up profits it gained from its alleged misconduct.

The first phase of the states' trial is scheduled to begin on August 18.

Attorney General Jackson has repeatedly fought for stronger online protections for children. In June, he urged Congress not to pass a federal bill that would tell tech companies they have no duty to protect children. Last August, he demanded that tech companies protect children from predatory artificial intelligence products and demanded that search engines, banks, and payment platforms take stronger steps against deepfake nonconsensual intimate imagery. Earlier that month, he demanded that Instagram change its location-sharing feature to keep kids safe from predators. Additionally, the North Carolina Department of Justice has an ongoing lawsuit against TikTok over alleged harms to minors. Attorney General Jackson also leads the nationwide AI Task Force to develop stronger safeguards for children.

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