Social Media Addiction Lawsuits for Child and Teen Harm (2024)

If you or your child developed mental health issues like depression, anxiety, or body dysmorphia due to excessive social media use, you may have a legal claim. We have a team of trauma-informed social media addiction lawyers who can guide you through the legal process. We also understand the concerns of parents and are committed to helping you protect your children while helping navigate the legal process.  

 

Talk to an award-winning lawyer today. 

Social media use is nearly universal among young people. While social media can have positive impacts, a growing body of evidence highlights its damaging effects on the mental health and well-being of children and young people. 

 

Gibbs Law Group is filing lawsuits against social media companies for allegedly creating addictive and harmful features in their apps and concealing the known mental health risks to youth.

 

Contact us today to schedule a free and confidential consultation and take the first step toward seeking justice for you or your child.

Research establishes a clear connection between social media use and increased anxiety, depression, and eating disorders in youth. 

 

Almost all youth ages 13–17 report using social media, with more than a third saying they use social media “almost constantly.”  

Source: Department of Health and Human Services,

National Institute of Health, National Library of Medicine

Social media platforms are designed to keep users hooked and maximize engagement. They want to keep users on the platform for as long as possible to increase their own profits.  

US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has issued a public advisory asking individuals and tech companies to take immediate action to address this urgent health crisis. He explained that these companies “seek to manipulate their developing brains into excessive use,” and that when it comes to pitting children’s willpower against social media’s addictive algorithms and “some of the best designers and product developers in the world,” it’s “just not a fair fight.” 

 

Recently, he also called for social media platforms to be required to display warning labels, similar to cigarette packs, to warn parents and youth of the potential risks associated with using these platforms.

  

Individuals, parents, school districts, and over 40 states are suing social media companies to hold them accountable for purposefully designing addictive algorithms and features that may cause child and teen depression, anxiety, self-harm, and eating disorders.   

 

Social media companies are facing hundreds of lawsuits for allegedly prioritizing user engagement over the mental and physical well-being of their users. These lawsuits claim that:

Gibbs Law Group is trailblazing the fight to hold social media companies accountable for the harm they cause. Our lawyers represent 170+ families whose children were harmed by social media companies, as well as young adults grappling with the effects of social media addiction. 

 

Social media platforms claimed that they were immune from certain legal claims and argued that these lawsuits should be dismissed, but our law firm successfully argued that the lawsuits should be allowed to move forward. The federal and state court judges overseeing the case agreed, allowing the lawsuits to move forward. These legal victories were featured in BBC, Bloomberg Law, Reuters, The Verge, and more.