Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has settled its first national case with a school district over harm to children’s mental health. The terms of the settlement with Breathitt County School District in eastern Kentucky are confidential. However, the district initially sought over $60 million to cover the costs of treating the injuries caused by Meta’s products and to pay for a 15-year mental health program. The school district also asked the court to order Meta to reduce the addictive features of its products.
Breathitt accused Meta of designing their platforms to addict children, causing anxiety, depression, and self-harm. Co-defendants Snap, YouTube, and TikTok settled their parts of the case earlier this month.
Breathitt is a small rural school district that serves about 1,600 students in six schools. About 1,200 other school districts, including the Los Angeles Unified School District and the New York City Public Schools, have filed similar suits. Breathitt’s case, In re: Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 3047, was selected as a bellwether (practice or test case) for the remaining suits.
In February 2026, a woman identified as KGM sued Meta, Google, and YouTube, claiming that the platforms addicted her, which caused physical and emotional harm. In March, a jury found in her favor and awarded her about $6 million. Also in March, a jury in New Mexico on Tuesday found Meta liable for harming children and misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms. It ordered Meta to pay $375 million in civil penalties for violating consumer protection laws.
Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 provides immunity to providers and users of interactive computer services for information created by another person. Providers remain liable for information that they create.
The next lawsuits against the social media companies are scheduled to be heard in July, including one filed by the Attorney General of Tennessee. The next scheduled school district case is by the Tucson Unified School District.
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Meta settles first lawsuit over harm to children’s mental health – Jurist.org
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