Source: WSLS 10

The Supreme Court declined to hear Meta Platforms Inc.’s appeal seeking to avoid a lawsuit that alleges Facebook and Instagram harmed young users, leaving in place Vermont’s highest court decision that allowed the attorney general’s 2023 suit to proceed. Meta had argued it lacked specific ties to Vermont, while the state said the apps’ large teen user base supplies jurisdiction; the Supreme Court’s refusal came in a brief, unexplained order and follows prior state-court losses for Meta and YouTube in California and New Mexico.

Vermont’s lawsuit arose after an investigation by a bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general and was accompanied by newspaper reports citing Meta’s internal research that found harms to teenagers, particularly teen girls, on Instagram. Those internal findings included survey figures cited in the reports — 13.5% of teen girls saying Instagram makes thoughts of suicide worse and 17% saying it makes eating disorders worse — while Meta has said it implemented dozens of tools to support teens and families and would have worked with states on youth social media standards; Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark praised the Supreme Court’s procedural decision as affirming that companies doing business in Vermont can be held accountable when they harm kids.