New Mexico Court Orders Meta to Pay $567 Million for Youth Mental Health Fund

A New Mexico state court has ordered Meta to pay $567 million into a fund for teen mental health prevention and treatment. Judge Bryan Biedscheid ruled that the company created a public nuisance by designing platforms that addicted young users and failed to protect children from sexual exploitation. This ruling follows an earlier phase of the case where a jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million for violating consumer protection laws and misleading parents about app safety. Combined, the penalties total $942 million.

In addition to the financial penalties, the judge ordered Meta to implement specific changes for users in New Mexico. These include more stringent age verification, restricting users under 18 to 90 hours of use per month, and disabling push notifications during school hours and overnight. The court also mandated that Meta ban sexualized chatbot interactions with minors, blur images suspected of containing nudity, and delete accounts and personal information for users under 13. However, the judge rejected requests to modify Meta's algorithms or features like infinite scroll and autoplay, citing potential First Amendment and Section 230 concerns.

Meta has stated that the claims misrepresent the facts and announced its intention to appeal the ruling. The company argued that its platforms are not the only ones used by youth and pointed to its existing investments in safety tools. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez described the decision as a blueprint for other governments seeking to force changes on social media platforms through the courts. This case occurs amid a broader wave of litigation involving dozens of states and school districts regarding youth mental health and safety.