New Mexico court orders Meta to pay $567 million in child safety case

A New Mexico court on Thursday ordered Meta Platforms to pay $567 million in a child safety case tied to social-media use by minors in the state. The ruling follows a first phase in which a jury found for New Mexico on elements of the claim, resulting in $375 million in civil penalties against Meta.

According to the report, the court’s Thursday order determined that Meta contributed to what the case described as a teen mental health crisis in New Mexico. The additional payment is framed as part of the case’s second phase, after the earlier civil-penalty component was assessed.

The case targets Facebook and Instagram through their parent company, Meta. The state’s allegations focus on the effects of the platforms on minors and the company’s role in those outcomes, while Meta has denied wrongdoing in the litigation, according to the reporting.

The $567 million order is described as an addition to the $375 million civil penalties already ordered in the first phase of the trial. Together, the two phases bring the reported total court-ordered civil penalties to $942 million, based on the amounts characterized in the same reporting.

Legal outcomes in the case can still depend on post-trial proceedings, including any challenges to the findings or penalty assessments. The report does not specify whether Meta has filed an appeal, nor does it detail the court’s remaining procedural steps.

In the meantime, the ruling adds to the broader state-level push to address alleged child-safety harms tied to algorithmic content, engagement features, and other platform functions, with courts weighing both causation arguments and the size of penalties assessed under applicable state law.