Court Orders Meta To Establish $567 Million Fund To Abate Harms To Youth

A New Mexico court has mandated Meta Platforms to establish a $567 million fund aimed at mitigating the negative impacts on youth mental health and combating child sexual exploitation on its platforms. Chief Judge Bryan Biedscheid declared in the decision that Meta's platforms significantly contributed to a teen mental health crisis in the state, affecting public health and safety.

The $567 million sum is in addition to $375 million in civil penalties already imposed on the company. The court did not mandate adjustments to specific features like infinite scroll and autoplay, citing potential constitutional and legal issues. This decision concludes the second phase of the State of New Mexico v. Meta Platforms Inc., which initially involved a bench trial to determine whether Meta's platforms constituted a public nuisance in New Mexico.

The question was settled in favor of the state, prompting the creation of the abatement fund. New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez had sued Meta in December 2023, claiming the company made misleading statements about platform safety while being aware of internal knowledge about child sexual exploitation facilitation. The court dismissed Meta's Section 230 defense in May 2024, maintaining that the state's public nuisance claim was not precluded by Section 230.

The court acknowledged that certain remedies might conflict with the law or the First Amendment, yet it successfully navigated these complexities.