New Mexico judge to decide if Meta is a public nuisance in landmark child safety trial

Key facts

• A jury found Meta violated New Mexico's unfair practices act in March, ordering $375 million in damages.
• New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez seeks approximately $3.7 billion in abatement costs and injunctive relief.
• The bench trial will determine if Meta's platforms constitute a public nuisance under state law.
• Torrez is demanding age-verification technology, algorithm redesign, and an end to autoplay and infinite scroll for minors.
• Meta argues the demands are technically impractical and could force the company to leave New Mexico.
• The case is one of thousands accusing social media companies of designing addictive products for youth.
• Experts compare the trial to the 'Big Tobacco' moment that reshaped the tobacco industry in the 1990s.

Trial opens in Santa Fe over Meta's child safety practices

Meta returned to a Santa Fe courthouse on Monday for the second phase of a child safety case that could redefine how social media companies operate in New Mexico. The juryless bench trial, expected to last three weeks, will decide whether Meta's Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp platforms created a public nuisance under state law. The proceedings follow a March jury verdict that found Meta willfully violated New Mexico's unfair practices act by misleading the public about the safety of its apps for young users. That ruling carried a $375 million penalty based on the number of offenses.

State seeks billions and sweeping platform changes

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, a Democrat, is seeking approximately $3.7 billion in abatement costs as well as injunctive relief.ate wants a court order requiring Meta to overhaul its products for New Mexico users, including implementing effective age-verification technologies, redesigning recommendation algorithms to prioritize quality content for minors, and ending features like autoplay and infinite scroll for young users. Torrez also called for an independent monitor to oversee compliance, stating during a press briefing last week that Meta cannot be trusted to regulate itself. The attorney general said the case could set a new standard not only in New Mexico but nationally and globally for how social media companies are expected to conduct themselves.

Meta pushes back on feasibility and science

Meta has argued that the state's demands are technically impractical and impossible for any company to meet, warning that they could force the company to leave New Mexico altogether. In court filings, the company said there is no scientific evidence linking social media to mental health problems and that Torrez's focus on a single platform ignores the hundreds of other apps teens use daily. A Meta spokesperson stated that New Mexico's demands disregard the realities of the internet. The company has also pointed to extensive measures it has already taken to ensure young users' safety.

Case part of broader legal reckoning for social media

The New Mexico trial is one of thousands of lawsuits accusing Meta and other social media companies of intentionally designing products to be addictive to young people, contributing to a nationwide mental health crisis. In March, a separate personal injury trial in Los Angeles found Meta and Google's YouTube liable for addicting a child plaintiff. Experts have characterized these cases as social media's 'Big Tobacco' moment, drawing parallels to the 1990s when tobacco companies were forced to pay billions for misleading the public and subsequently saw their influence wane. Nikolas Guggenberger, an assistant professor at the University of Houston Law Center, noted that while the change was not instant, the power of big tobacco today bears no comparison to its peak in the 1980s or 1990s.

Financial and regulatory pressures mount on Meta

Meta warned investors last week that legal and regulatory blowback in the European Union and the United States could significantly impact its business and financial results. The company has faced mounting criticism over children's safety on its platforms for years. The New Mexico case, if decided against Meta, could force fundamental changes to how the company provides services in the state, potentially setting a precedent for other jurisdictions. Torrez's office is seeking not only monetary damages but also structural remedies that would alter Meta's business model for young users.

Outlook: A verdict with far-reaching implications

The judge's decision on the public nuisance claim will determine whether Meta must implement the sweeping changes sought by the state. If the court finds Meta liable, it could order the company to spend billions on abatement and submit to independent monitoring. Meta has signaled it may challenge any adverse ruling, but the trial represents a critical juncture in the broader effort to hold social media companies accountable for their impact on youth mental health. The outcome could influence similar cases pending across the country and reshape the regulatory landscape for the entire industry.

The bottom line

• A New Mexico judge will decide if Meta's platforms are a public nuisance, potentially forcing billions in costs and product changes.
• The state seeks $3.7 billion in abatement costs and an independent monitor to oversee compliance.
• Meta argues the demands are technically infeasible and could drive the company out of New Mexico.
• The trial is part of a wave of litigation likened to the 'Big Tobacco' cases of the 1990s.
• A March jury already found Meta violated consumer protection law, ordering $375 million in damages.
• The verdict could set a precedent for how social media companies operate nationwide and globally.