Jury selection began Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court in the second trial over claims that social media companies designed their apps to hook children. Meta and Snap are the remaining defendants, and it is the first time Snap has faced a jury in one of these cases.
Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl, who oversees more than 3,000 coordinated social media cases in California state court, is trying two bellwether cases together before one jury. A bellwether is a test case. Its result helps both sides gauge how juries may view the many similar claims still waiting.
Who Is Suing
The plaintiffs are identified only by their initials. S.J. is a 16-year-old from Illinois. K.D.B. is an 18-year-old from Mississippi. Both filed suit in 2023.
According to their lawyers, both girls began watching YouTube as early as age 3 or 4 and started on other platforms around age 9. They allege that features such as autoplay, infinite scroll, push notifications, view counts and Snapchat’s Snapstreaks drove compulsive use, and that they developed depression, anxiety and eating disorders. K.D.B.’s complaint also alleges self-harm and suicidal thoughts. They seek compensatory and punitive damages.
TikTok and YouTube settled with both plaintiffs before trial, and S.J. also settled with Meta. That leaves both girls’ claims against Snap and K.D.B.’s claims against Meta. Settlement terms were not disclosed.
What the Companies Say
Meta and Snap asked Judge Kuhl to hold separate trials, arguing that trying the two cases together would confuse jurors. As of Wednesday the judge had not ruled on that request.
Meta says it disagrees with the claims and has built protections into its apps for a decade. It also argues that K.D.B. used TikTok far more than Instagram or Facebook and that her personal circumstances were a substantial factor in her struggles. Snap says Snapchat opens to a camera rather than a feed and that the allegations misrepresent the plaintiffs’ experiences on its app.
Before trial, the companies and the plaintiffs also fought over what jurors will hear, including evidence about the girls’ family lives that the companies say points to other causes of their injuries. The plaintiffs asked the court to keep that evidence out.
Zuckerberg, Mosseri and Spiegel Expected to Testify
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Instagram head Adam Mosseri and Snap CEO Evan Spiegel are expected to testify in November. On September 29, Judge Kuhl denied Meta’s bid to keep Zuckerberg and Mosseri off the stand. Opening statements are expected in early November, and the trial is expected to run several weeks.
The First Verdict
The same courtroom produced the first social media addiction verdict in the country. On March 25, 2026, a jury found Meta and Google’s YouTube negligent in a case brought by a young woman identified as K.G.M. and awarded $6 million. Judge Kuhl denied the companies’ post-trial motions in June, and both are appealing.
Other trials set for this year were settled or dropped before reaching a jury. A separate federal proceeding before Chief Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland holds more than 3,800 lawsuits by individuals, school districts and others.
For what the trial means for families, see Two Teens Take Meta and Snap to Trial, and for the full picture, the Social Media Addiction Lawsuit Update.
Doyle APC handles social media addiction lawsuits together with experienced co-counsel.
Common Questions
Is the social media addiction lawsuit a class action?
No. It is a mass tort. Each person files an individual claim, and the claims are coordinated before one judge in California state court and in federal court for pretrial proceedings and test trials.
Does this trial decide other families’ claims?
No. The verdict binds only these parties. Bellwether results show how juries respond to the evidence and often shape settlement talks for the cases still waiting.
Which apps are named in the lawsuits?
Instagram and Facebook (Meta), Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube.
What injuries do the lawsuits involve?
The lawsuits allege depression, anxiety, eating disorders, body image problems, self-harm and suicidal thoughts, among other harms.
Did Meta’s settlement with the states pay families?
No. Meta’s August settlement with state attorneys general pays the states and changes how teens use its apps. Families must file their own claims to seek compensation.
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