On August 6, 2026, District Judge Bryan Biedscheid ordered the parent company of Facebook and Instagram to pay $567 million toward programs intended to address harm suffered by young people. The judgment follows a March jury verdict imposing another $375 million in civil penalties, bringing Meta’s total financial liability in the New Mexico case to $942 million.

The court concluded that Meta’s platforms are a ‘significant contributing cause’ of a teenage mental-health crisis affecting public health and safety in the state. Judge Biedscheid concluded that the effects of Meta’s platforms amounted to a public nuisance and ordered the company to contribute $567 million to an abatement program. Meta rejects the court’s conclusions and plans to appeal.

The ruling against Meta is another indication the legal landscape for big tech companies is changing. A similar ruling earlier this year in Los Angeles also found that Meta platforms contributed to mental health problems for users. Big tech companies have long been virtually immune from legal action due to use of their online platforms, but now users have two solid precedents that could support more lawsuits holding technology companies liable…

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The New Mexico case began with a lawsuit filed by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez in 2023. State investigators alleged that Meta had misled parents and consumers about the safety of its products while exposing young users to addictive features, damaging material and the danger of sexual exploitation. A jury found Meta liable under New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act and imposed the maximum civil penalty of $375 million. State officials argued that Meta knew its products could harm children but continued operating and promoting them without adequate safeguards.

The ruling also could change how Facebook and Instagram operate in New Mexico. Meta must provide more prominent information explaining safety tools and protections, improve systems for determining users’ ages and develop better methods for detecting children under thirteen. It must establish a system allowing schools or child-safety organizations to report suspected underage accounts and delete personal information collected from users determined to be under thirteen. The company will also have to submit regular reports documenting its compliance.

Courts have struggled with attempts to hold technology companies responsible for content posted by users. The New Mexico case focuses instead on product design, corporate representations and platform features. That distinction could make it easier for governments and plaintiffs to argue that features intended to increase engagement should be treated more like potentially harmful product designs.

Twenty-nine states are currently involved in federal litigation accusing Meta of contributing to the youth mental-health crisis, while additional states have brought their own cases. Thousands of families are also pursuing claims involving social-media harm. If other courts adopt reasoning similar to New Mexico’s, companies such as Meta, Google, TikTok and Snap could face not merely large settlements but court-ordered changes to the fundamental design of their products.

European and Asian countries have begun imposing social media bans for children, meaning the effort to control and regulate big tech companies is a global phenomenon.

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Mode Mobile received their ticker reservation with Nasdaq ($MODE), indicating an intent to IPO in the next 24 months. An intent to IPO is no guarantee that an actual IPO will occur.

Mode revenue and EBITDA numbers include full year revenue and EBITDA of businesses acquired by Mode Mobile in 2025.