Meta faces new legal trouble as court finds company tried to block research on teen harm

Meta

A court in Washington, DC, has ruled that Meta — the parent company of Facebook and Instagram — cannot use attorney-client privilege to hide certain internal documents related to teen mental health. The ruling is part of a wider legal battle in the United States over how social media platforms affect young users.

According to Bloomberg Law, Judge Yvonne Williams of the DC Superior Court found that Meta’s lawyers had advised company researchers to “remove,” “block,” or “limit” parts of their studies on teen mental health harm to reduce the company’s legal risks. The court said this advice went beyond normal legal counsel and appeared to be an attempt to cover up or alter information — which falls under the crime-fraud exception to attorney-client privilege.

“The Court notes that Meta’s counsel explicitly advised Meta researchers to ‘remove,’ ‘block,’ ‘button up,’ ‘limit,’ and ‘update’ their research,” Judge Williams wrote, adding that such advice was aimed at reducing the company’s potential liability.

Meta, however, disagreed with the court’s view. A company spokesperson said these were “routine, appropriate lawyer-client discussions,” and denied that any research findings were deleted or destroyed. Meta now has seven days to hand over the four documents in question, which were created between November 2022 and July 2023.

The case is tied to a larger set of lawsuits filed in a California federal court, where dozens of US state attorneys general — including Washington, DC — and hundreds of parents, teens, and school districts are suing Meta. They accuse the company of making its platforms addictive and harmful to teenagers’ mental health. The first trials in those cases are expected to start next year.

Judge Williams’ order is likely to influence the ongoing California lawsuits as well, since the ruling has already been shared with the court there.

The decision marks another blow to Meta, which has been under growing global scrutiny — including in India — over the impact of its apps on young users’ mental well-being.