Attorney Mark Lanier Secures First Verdict on Social‑Media Addiction, Leads $16.7 Billion Meta Settlement

Meta and Google were hit with a $6 million verdict in the first social‑media‑addiction trial, led by attorney Mark Lanier, in March. Lanier, who described the fight as "beating the tar out of them," told WIRED senior correspondent Lauren Goode at the WIRED World Fair on Wednesday that the case was meant to push companies toward real change. The March verdict awarded the plaintiff $6 million – a symbolic sum compared with Meta’s $1.7 trillion market value. Lanier said state‑level lawsuits, where attorneys general act for their states, could bring larger financial penalties and policy shifts. In August, attorneys general from several states, including Arkansas where Lanier’s firm acted as outside counsel, sued Meta for not protecting teenage users. Within days, Meta agreed to a settlement of up to $16.7 billion to be paid to 51 U.S. states and territories and pledged a default two‑hour daily limit for teen use of Instagram and Facebook. TikTok later accepted similar limits in an Alabama settlement in September. Lanier warned that a company the size of Meta can absorb billions as a cost of doing business, but the real impact extends to public and employee attitudes toward the platforms. He added that public awareness and pressure are essential for lasting reform, noting he was there "because I want everybody to know what these companies do." ## Context State‑level actions against tech firms have grown as states seek to fill gaps left by federal regulation, and settlement limits on teenage screen time are an emerging tool to curb addiction.