Meta Platforms announced Thursday it is halting advertisements on Facebook and Instagram that sought to recruit plaintiffs for lawsuits. These suits accuse Meta and other social media firms of designing addictive platforms for young users.
Meta spokesperson Andy Stone stated the company is defending itself against these lawsuits, which involve thousands of cases. "We will not allow trial lawyers to profit from our platforms while simultaneously claiming they are harmful," Stone said.
The decision follows Meta's recent losses in two critical trials. In late March, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Alphabet's Google liable for a young woman's depression and suicidal thoughts, ordering $6 million in damages. Earlier, a New Mexico case resulted in Meta being ordered to pay $375 million for misleading users about product safety and enabling child sexual exploitation.
Over 3,300 addiction-related lawsuits are pending in California state court against Meta, Google, Snap, and ByteDance. Another 2,400 cases are centralized in federal court. The companies maintain they take extensive steps to protect young users.
Law firms typically operate on contingency, paid only if plaintiffs win damages or settlements. To make these mass tort cases financially viable, firms often seek to represent numerous plaintiffs, using online, radio, and television ads to find them. Law firms like Morgan & Morgan and companies like White Heart Legal have placed ads on Meta's platforms.