US appeals court allows thousands of lawsuits against social media companies over user addiction claims to proceed

By Diana Novak Jones

Aug 10 (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals tribunal connected Monday allowed thousands of lawsuits to determination guardant against Meta Platforms, Alphabet's Google, ByteDance's TikTok, and different societal media companies implicit claims they designed their products to beryllium addictive to young ‌users.

The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the companies' bid to reverse a little court's ruling forcing them to ‌face immoderate 2,400 lawsuits implicit the claims filed successful national court.

The companies, which besides see Snap Inc's Snapchat, had argued that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 - which ​shields them from lawsuits implicit contented posted by their users - besides shields them from allegations that they failed to pass the nationalist astir the addictive quality of their platforms.

But the tribunal said the entreaty was brought excessively aboriginal for it to measurement in, a occupation the judges flagged during oral arguments successful the case. Most appeals travel aft a proceedings successful the lawsuit has concluded, truthful the judge's determination would beryllium reviewed astatine that time, the judges said.

Filed by ‌states, municipalities, schoolhouse districts and individuals, the lawsuits allege ⁠that societal media companies intentionally addicted young users, contributing to surging depression, anxiousness and body-image issues and a broader intelligence wellness situation among American younker successful caller years.

The plaintiffs - which see parents, schoolhouse districts and states - had argued that ⁠the proceedings court's ruling was not last and truthful could not beryllium appealed. But they besides objected to the companies' arguments astir the national law, saying it does not screen claims related to however they run and plan their products.

The cases, which person been centralized earlier U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers successful Oakland, California, question ​damages, ​penalties and restitution from the companies. The companies appealed Rogers' orders successful 2023 and ​2024 that mostly allowed the litigation to determination forward.

At arguments ‌in the lawsuit connected January 6, the appeals tribunal judges expressed skepticism that it was an due clip to measurement successful connected the case. But they besides had questions astir the companies' statement that they were shielded from the claims by national law, with 1 justice noting that if Congress had intended for the instrumentality to supply a shield for the companies from wide liability it could person said truthful explicitly.

The companies are facing hundreds of further lawsuits implicit akin claims successful authorities court, with astir 3,300 of them successful a consolidated proceeding successful California authorities court.