The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to hear Meta Platforms’ appeal seeking to block the Vermont lawsuit accusing Instagram of being intentionally designed to addict young users. The decision allows the case, brought by Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark, to continue in state court.
The lawsuit alleges that Meta knowingly designed Instagram features to exploit teenagers’ psychological vulnerabilities in order to increase engagement and advertising revenue. Vermont also accused the company of misleading consumers about the platform’s safety and the risks it posed to children and teens.
Meta argued that Vermont courts did not have jurisdiction over the California-based company, and said allowing the case to proceed violated the company’s due process rights under the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment. The Vermont Supreme Court rejected that argument earlier, finding that Meta targeted users and advertising markets within the state and profited from Vermont based activity.
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The Supreme Court did not explain its decision over not willing to hear the appeal, which is standard practice in most denied petitions. The ruling does not determine whether Meta violated the law, but it means Vermont’s claims can continue through the court process.
In court filings, Vermont argued that Instagram was designed to “exploit teenagers’ developing brains” in order to increase addiction and advertising sales. The state also alleged that Meta studied “neurological, cognitive and psychological vulnerabilities” in teens to encourage compulsive use of the app. The Vermont Supreme Court, while allowing the lawsuit to move forward, wrote that “a company that reaches out and purposefully avails itself of a forum state’s market for its own economic gain can expect to be haled into court in that jurisdiction.”
The Vermont case is one of many lawsuits filed across the United States against social media companies over the effects of their platforms on children and teenagers. Reuters reported that individuals, municipalities, school districts and states have filed lawsuits focusing on how social media platforms were designed and operated.
Reuters also reported that 42 state attorneys general have participated in legal actions against Meta and other social media companies over alleged harms to young users and deceptive business practices.
READ: ‘Sad to say goodbye’: Zuckerberg addresses laid off employees at Meta via memo (May< Meta has faced several recent courtroom setbacks tied to youth mental health claims. In March, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google careless in a case involving allegations that social media platforms harmed a young user’s mental health, awarding about $6 million in damages.
In New Mexico, a jury earlier this year found Meta violated the state’s consumer protection law by misrepresenting the safety of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp for young users, resulting in a $375 million damages award. The state is also seeking broader changes to Meta’s platforms in a separate phase of the case.
Meta has denied allegations that its platforms are intentionally harmful to children and has said it continues developing protections aimed at improving teen safety online.