MDL 3047 Legal Help

Developing litigation

Case updates changelog

Every dated litigation update note published on this site, newest first. Each entry links back to the pages carrying that update so you can read it in context. These are developing-litigation snapshots, not settlement announcements — no result in another case establishes that any new claimant will recover anything.

  1. Meta settles the states' claims for up to $16.68 billion

    Mid-trial in Oakland, Meta agreed to pay a maximum of $16.68 billion and adopt nationwide teen safeguards to resolve claims brought by states. The settlement ends the states' enforcement case — it does not pay individual families and does not resolve MDL 3047.

    • Meta settled the states' case during trial. On August 26, 2026, court papers showed Meta agreed to pay a maximum of $16.68 billion to resolve claims brought by states that it designed Facebook and Instagram to addict children, misled consumers about their safety, and improperly collected the personal data of children on its platforms. The federal trial in Oakland covered consumer-protection claims by California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey, plus claims by 29 states under the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. Meta denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle. Source: Reuters, August 26, 2026.
    • Meta agreed to nationwide teen safeguards. As part of the settlement, Meta agreed to make changes for teenage users of Facebook and Instagram nationwide, including daily usage limits and nighttime blocks.
    • This does not pay individual families and does not resolve MDL 3047. The settlement resolves the states' enforcement claims. It is not a fund for individual families, there is no public claim form attached to it, and the thousands of individual injury cases coordinated in MDL 3047 and pending in state courts remain unresolved. Snap, TikTok and ByteDance, and YouTube and Alphabet are not parties to it. Families who believe they were harmed still have to file their own claims through counsel, and state filing deadlines keep running.

    Where this update appears

  2. Meta whistleblower tells states' trial Zuckerberg ignored child-safety calls

    Former Meta safety engineer Arturo Béjar testified that Mark Zuckerberg received internal requests to prioritize child safety while Meta publicly touted safety practices and operated a 'don't ask, don't tell' policy on under-13 users.

    • A whistleblower took the stand in the 29-state trial against Meta. On August 19, 2026, Arturo Béjar — a former Meta safety engineer and later an Instagram consultant who has testified before Congress on child safety — told jurors in the 29-state attorney general trial that CEO Mark Zuckerberg was personally asked to prioritize child safety and did not act. Béjar said, 'I feel that you just cannot trust Mark Zuckerberg with kids.' The testimony is part of the states' enforcement action, not the federal MDL 3047 personal-injury docket.
    • Meta allegedly had a 'don't ask, don't tell' approach to under-13 users. Béjar testified that Meta had the tools to identify children under 13 on Instagram and Facebook but avoided using them, creating what he described as a 'don't ask, don't tell' culture. He said this allowed the company to publicly promote safety while internally deprioritizing protections for young users.
    • The testimony does not create a claims process for individual families. The states' trial seeks civil penalties and injunctive changes on behalf of the public. It is separate from MDL 3047, where individual families must file their own complaints through counsel. There is currently no MDL-wide settlement and no public claim form.

    Where this update appears

  3. Ninth Circuit lets the addiction lawsuits proceed; first verdicts land

    An appellate ruling on Section 230, a 29-state attorney general trial, and the first bellwether and state-court verdicts against the platforms.

    • The addiction lawsuits are moving forward. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snapchat's bid to halt more than 3,000 social media addiction lawsuits before trial. The court held that Section 230 is a defense to liability rather than blanket immunity, so the appeal was premature. The federal cases, including MDL 3047, remain centralized before Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California.
    • A state attorney general trial is underway. The panel also denied Meta's request to delay a trial brought by 29 state attorneys general. The states allege Meta illegally collected children's data and deliberately engineered its platforms to keep young users engaged.
    • Early verdicts and penalties have gone against the platforms. A Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google negligent in the first bellwether trial, awarding $6 million. Meta separately lost both phases of a New Mexico case — $375 million in damages for misleading safety claims, plus a $567 million public-nuisance penalty.

    Where this update appears

Free, confidential case review

Speak with our legal team about whether your family may have a claim in the ongoing social media harm litigation (MDL 3047). Filing preserves your place and protects deadlines as the case develops; there is no public claim form and no automatic payment.

  • 100% confidential
  • Same-day callback
Start intake formDo I qualify?