US teenager withdraws Meta lawsuit before Los Angeles trial

A US teenager has withdrawn his lawsuit against Meta, his lawyers announced on Wednesday, ending a closely watched case about alleged harms from social media to children's mental health before trial.

The case had been due to go before a Los Angeles jury on July 27. Meta would have been the only remaining defendant after YouTube, TikTok and Snap reached confidential settlements.

The plaintiff, identified by his initials R.K.C., is a teenager from Florida. He claimed that compulsive social media use contributed to anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts, for which he continues to receive treatment. His case had been chosen as a bellwether to help address thousands of similar lawsuits across the United States.

Lawyers Emily Jeffcott and Rahul Ravipudi said R.K.C. had wanted to hold social media companies accountable and push for changes to protect young people. They said he chose to withdraw his claims against Meta because of what they described as the overall successful result of the litigation and his concern about going through a weeks-long trial. They said he wanted to focus on recovery and therapy.

A Meta spokesperson said the plaintiff dropped the case against Meta, the only remaining defendant, without receiving any payment from the company. Meta said the claims were baseless and that it would continue to defend itself against such lawsuits.

YouTube reached a confidential settlement with R.K.C. in June. TikTok and Snap reached their own settlements on July 1 and July 20.

Meta faces other legal action over claims that its products are addictive and harm young people. In a first bellwether trial in March, a Los Angeles jury ordered Meta and Google to pay $6 million to a 20-year-old woman identified as K.G.M. Another case in New Mexico found Meta liable for misleading consumers about safety risks its platforms pose to children, with the jury ordering $375 million in damages.

In May, Meta, Snap, TikTok and YouTube reached confidential settlements with a Kentucky school district, avoiding another trial in Oakland, California. In a separate case, more than 30 US states are suing Meta over similar allegations, with a potential trial set for August in Oakland. Another case against Meta opened in Tennessee this week.