On August 26, Meta entered into a $17.1 billion settlement with 47 state attorneys general to resolve pending claims alleging the company violated state consumer privacy and consumer protection laws. The settlement, which includes an agreement to limit youth usage to two-hours per day, came amidst a federal bellwether trial brought by the attorney generals offices of California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey, who each alleged that Meta addicted children to their products and, as a result, harmed them.

What’s next in the social media addiction litigation? Join Lexi Hazam, Co-Lead Counsel of federal Multi-District Litigation (MDL) No. 3047, In re Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation, Megan O’Neill, a Deputy Attorney General at the California Department of Justice, and Stanford Law Professor Evelyn Douek, First Amendment scholar, for a conversation moderated by Professor Nora Freeman Engstrom.

This panel will cover Meta’s settlement with state attorneys general, discuss the company’s rationales for settling, and situate the settlement within the broader landscape of social media addiction litigation, including ongoing private civil suits and remaining state attorney general claims against other companies like Snap, TikTok, and YouTube. Topics will span discussion of the First Amendment, technology law, plaintiffs’ law, mass torts, and public client work.

This event is open to the Stanford community. Please RSVP for lunch.