Judge Selects 11 Social Media Addiction Lawsuits for MDL Bellwether Jury Trials

First trials will test claims filed by schools and families over mental health harms linked to algorithms used by Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

The U.S. District Judge presiding over all social media addiction lawsuits filed in the federal court system has issued a case management order, confirming that claims brought by six school districts and five different individuals will serve as early bellwether trials, which are designed to help the parties gauge how juries may respond to evidence and testimony that will be repeated throughout the litigation.

Each of the lawsuits raise similar claims that social media platforms like Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat and Instagram are intentionally designed to maximize user engagement through manipulative algorithms, often at the expense of young users’ mental health. Plaintiffs allege that these platforms exploit the psychological vulnerabilities of teens and children, encouraging compulsive use that can lead to lasting harm.

As a result, many teens and young adults involved in the litigation have reportedly developed serious mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders and suicidal thoughts. Some of the cases are wrongful death lawsuits brought by parents, who say their child’s social media addiction ultimately led to suicide.

In addition to these personal injury claims, several school districts have filed lawsuits alleging that social media companies have created a youth mental health crisis that is overburdening schools with increased counseling demands, behavioral interventions and suicide prevention efforts.

Given common issues of fact and law raised in complaints filed throughout the federal court system, all social media teen addiction lawsuits are currently consolidated as part of a multidistrict litigation (MDL) in the Northern District of California, where U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers has been presiding over coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

To get a sense of how juries are likely to respond to certain evidence and testimony that will be repeated throughout the claims, Judge Rogers has indicated that several bellwether trials will be held involving both individual student injuries and claims brought by school districts, with the first trial expected to begin in 2026.

Social Media Addiction Bellwether Selections

On June 16, 2025, Judge Rogers issued Case Management Order No. 24 (PDF), officially confirming the initial bellwether pool of 11 cases that will be eligible for the first social media addiction bellwether trials.

The selections include six school district lawsuits and five cases brought by individual plaintiffs, all of which will be prepared for early jury trials to help test legal theories, evidence and witness credibility.

The six school district claims involve diverse geographic and socioeconomic regions, including:

• Board of Education of Harford County (Maryland)
• DeKalb County School District (Georgia) – which has asserted a Lexecon objection that may affect trial venue
• Breathitt County Board of Education (Kentucky) – a rural district that may be tried in the court’s Eureka Division
• Irvington Public Schools (New Jersey)
• Tucson Unified School District (Arizona) – where a discovery dispute recently limited witness testimony
• Charleston County School District (South Carolina)

Each of these districts alleges that social media platforms have contributed to a growing mental health crisis among their student populations, forcing schools to invest in additional counseling services, safety protocols and suicide prevention efforts.

The five individual bellwether lawsuits were filed by families on behalf of young users who suffered psychological harm after prolonged exposure to social media. While the complaints vary in detail, all involve allegations of addiction-driven mental health disorders, often starting at an early age. The selected cases are:

• D’Orazio v. Meta Platforms, Inc.
• Smith v. Meta Platforms, Inc.
• Melton v. Meta Platforms, Inc.
• Mullen v. Meta Platforms, Inc.
• Clevenger v. Meta Platforms, Inc.

Should one of these cases resolve or be dismissed prior to trial, the court has indicated that S.K. v. Meta Platforms, Inc. may be added as a backup bellwether, which is a case involving a minor who developed depression, anxiety, body dysmorphia, self-harm and suicidal ideation after compulsive use of Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube.

During a recent status conference with the parties, Judge Rogers also addressed a dispute over witnesses in the case brought by the Tucson Unified School District. Just as the discovery phase was ending, the district attempted to add two new witnesses, a student and a school administrator.

The court found that adding the student at such a late stage was unfair to the defense and ruled that the student could not testify. However, the judge allowed the administrator to remain in the case, since records related to that individual had already been shared with the defendants earlier in the process.

Although trial dates have not yet been set, the first bellwether case is expected to go before a jury in 2026. In the meantime, the court will continue to hold regular case management conferences to oversee the exchange of evidence and expert reports.

While the outcome of the bellwether trials will not be binding on the rest of the litigation, they are expected to provide critical insight into how juries respond to the growing body of evidence linking adolescent mental health harms to the design and operation of social media platforms.

Sign up to receive more legal news that may impact you or your family.