Evidence That May Support a Social Media Addiction Claim

• Platform usage records
• Dates accounts were created.
• Age when platform use began.
• Daily or weekly screen time.
• Usage history and available account activity data.
• Notifications and other engagement records.
• Evidence of frequent nighttime use.
• Records showing difficulty limiting or stopping use.
• Medical documentation
• Mental health diagnoses.
• Counseling and psychotherapy records.
• Psychiatric evaluations.
• Medication and treatment history.
• Hospitalization records.
• Records documenting self-harm or suicide attempts.
• Documentation of the onset and progression of symptoms.
• Educational records
• Changes in grades or attendance.
• School counseling records.
• Disciplinary or behavioral documentation.
• Changes in academic performance.
• Evidence of withdrawal from extracurricular activities.
• Family and witness evidence
• Parent or guardian observations.
• Statements from teachers or counselors.
• Accounts of changes in behavior or sleep.
• Evidence of attempts to restrict social media use.
• Documentation of distress associated with restricted access.

Additional evidence

• Relevant screenshots and preserved communications.
• Evidence of repeated exposure to allegedly harmful recommendations.
• Records showing when symptoms began relative to platform use.
• Expert evaluations addressing causation and damages.
• Records should be preserved lawfully and in their original form whenever possible.
• Families should not assume that deleting an account will preserve its activity history.

Legal Claims Being Asserted

• Negligence: Allegations that defendants failed to exercise reasonable care in designing or operating their platforms.
• Negligent product design: Claims that particular design features created foreseeable and unreasonable risks.
• Strict product liability: Claims that certain platform features constitute defective products under applicable law.
• Failure to warn: Allegations that companies failed to adequately disclose known or foreseeable risks.
• Fraudulent concealment: Allegations that defendants intentionally withheld material safety information.
• Negligent misrepresentation: Allegations concerning inaccurate or misleading representations about safety.
• Consumer protection violations: Claims involving alleged unfair or deceptive business practices.
• Wrongful death: Claims brought by eligible survivors or representatives when an alleged injury resulted in death.
• Survival actions: Claims that may permit an estate to pursue certain damages on behalf of a deceased individual.
• Public nuisance and governmental claims: Claims brought by public entities alleging broader community harms and associated costs.

Allegations Specific to Each Defendant

Meta: Facebook and Instagram

• Instagram’s personalized feed, Reels, Stories, and Explore recommendations are central to many allegations.
• Plaintiffs allege that Instagram’s visual emphasis on appearance and popularity can contribute to unhealthy social comparisons.
• Beauty filters and edited images allegedly reinforce unrealistic appearance standards.
• Likes, follower counts, and other metrics allegedly create pressure for social approval.
• Repeated exposure to appearance-related content is alleged to contribute to body dissatisfaction and disordered eating.
• Plaintiffs allege that Meta had internal information concerning potential harms to teenage users.
• Meta has faced separate lawsuits brought by state attorneys general alleging deceptive practices and harm to minors.
• Meta denies that it deliberately designed its platforms to addict children and emphasizes its teen safety measures.

Snap: Snapchat

• Snapstreaks allegedly create pressure to communicate every day to avoid losing a streak.
• Snapscore and similar engagement measurements allegedly encourage frequent activity.
• Disappearing messages allegedly encourage repeated checking and interaction.
• Push notifications allegedly increase the frequency of platform use.
• Filters and appearance-altering features are alleged to contribute to body image concerns.
• Plaintiffs also raise concerns about bullying, social pressure, and sleep disruption.
• Certain separate lawsuits concern drug transactions and other dangerous interactions on Snapchat; these should not automatically be treated as identical to the addiction claims.
• Snap disputes the addiction allegations and points to its safety programs and protections.

TikTok

• The For You feed uses personalized recommendations to present a continuous stream of videos.
• Plaintiffs allege that its recommendation system can reinforce prolonged, compulsive viewing.
• Short-form videos and continuous playback allegedly encourage repetitive use.
• Social validation through likes, shares, views, and follower counts allegedly reinforces engagement.
• Plaintiffs allege that some users are repeatedly exposed to content involving appearance concerns, disordered eating, or self-harm.
• Lawsuits question whether existing screen time controls and youth protections adequately address these risks.
• TikTok disputes allegations that its platform was designed to cause addiction.

YouTube: Google

• YouTube’s recommendation algorithm allegedly encourages prolonged viewing sessions.
• Autoplay can move viewers from one video to another without an additional selection.
• YouTube Shorts allegedly uses a continuous short-form video experience.
• Personalized content recommendations are alleged to reinforce repetitive viewing.
• Plaintiffs question whether younger users are adequately protected from potentially harmful content.
• Some claims concern exposure beginning in early childhood.
• Google disputes the allegations and emphasizes YouTube’s parental controls, age-based experiences, and safety policies.

Factors that may complicate eligibility

• No diagnosed or otherwise adequately documented injury.
• No evidence of problematic or compulsive platform use.
• Injuries that clearly preceded the alleged harmful use.
• Insufficient evidence linking a particular defendant to the alleged injury.
• Expired statutes of limitations or other legal bars.
• Claims arising exclusively from third-party content rather than actionable platform conduct.
• Important qualification considerations
• There is no single nationwide minimum usage age, number of hours, diagnosis, or treatment requirement applicable to every social media lawsuit.
• Law firms may establish narrower screening criteria for the cases they accept.
• A formal diagnosis is valuable evidence, but its necessity depends on the particular legal claim.
• Preexisting mental health conditions do not necessarily prevent a claim, although they can complicate causation.
• Individuals who used more than one platform may have claims against multiple defendants.