Social Media Mental Health Lawsuit Alleges Facebook, Other Platforms Contributed to Teen’s Suicide

Lawsuit claims social media platforms fueled depression, anxiety and self-harm in a teenage boy, culminating in his suicide in May 2025.

A mother’s wrongful death lawsuit alleges that major social media companies contributed to the suicide of a 16-year-old boy by designing platforms that foster addiction and worsen mental health conditions.

The complaint (PDF) was filed by Amanda Deyak on behalf of her son, Jonathan Hunter, in California Superior Court on April 24. It names Meta Platforms Inc., Facebook Holdings Inc., Facebook Operations LLC, Instagram LLC, Snap Inc., TikTok Inc., ByteDance Inc., Google LLC and YouTube LLC as defendants.

The claim is one of thousands of social media addiction lawsuits now pending in courts nationwide, with plaintiffs alleging that companies like Meta, Google and TikTok deliberately engineered their platforms to encourage prolonged and compulsive use. According to the filings, these design choices have contributed to serious mental health problems among teens and young adults, including anxiety, depression, eating disorders and behavioral issues. Some cases, like Deyak’s, have even linked excessive use to self-harm and suicide.

In addition to individual complaints, lawsuits have also been filed by municipalities, state attorneys general and school districts, many of which focus on broader societal impacts and alleged violations of consumer protection and public health laws.

Social Media Mental Health Allegations

In the lawsuit, Deyak claims that shortly after creating accounts on various social media platforms, Hunter developed what is described as addictive and problematic use, with his interest in other activities steadily declining.

His mother alleges these platforms were intentionally designed to maximize engagement through constant notifications, algorithm-driven content recommendations and other features that encouraged prolonged use, ultimately leading to sleep deprivation and compulsive behavior.

As a result, Deyak claims her son experienced a range of psychological and physical harms, including depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, self-harm, body dysmorphia and chronic fatigue, which contributed to his death by suicide on May 11, 2025.

The lawsuit asserts that Hunter’s death was the foreseeable result of the defendants’ conduct, arguing that social media platforms function as “attractive nuisances” for minors and expose them to significant psychological risks without adequate safeguards.

Deyak maintains that the companies could have reduced the risks of addiction and mental health harm through safer product designs, clearer warnings and stronger parental controls, without limiting third-party content or user-generated speech.

The lawsuit claims the companies instead marketed their platforms as safe and non-addictive, while designing features that encouraged compulsive use and made it harder for parents to monitor or restrict their children’s activity.

“Defendants have specifically designed their platforms to be attractive nuisances to underage users but failed to exercise the ordinary care owed to underage business invitees to prevent the rampant, foreseeable, and deleterious impact on minor users that access Defendants’ platforms.”

— Amanda Deyak v. Meta Platforms Inc. et al

The complaint raises allegations of strict liability, design defect, failure to warn, manufacturing defect, negligent design, negligent failure to warn, negligent manufacturing, negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud, fraudulent concealment, conspiracy to commit fraud, unjust enrichment, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, negligent failure to recall, violation of unfair trade practices and consumer protection laws, and wrongful death.

It is seeking actual, compensatory, statutory, wrongful death and survival damages.

Social Media Addiction Lawsuits

The case adds to a growing number of lawsuits nationwide alleging that social media companies have contributed to rising rates of depression, anxiety and suicide among adolescents through the design and operation of their platforms.

More than 2,000 separate cases filed by individuals, families and school districts have been consolidated in a federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in the Northern District of California for coordinated pretrial proceedings.

Judge Rogers is preparing a series of federal social media addiction bellwether trials, with the first test case currently set to begin on June 15. The trial will involve claims brought by Kentucky’s Breathitt County Board of Education, which alleges it has faced significant burdens addressing the growing student mental health crisis in recent years.

Alongside the federal litigation, a number of social media addiction lawsuits filed in state courts have already gone to trial. In March, a Los Angeles jury found that Meta and Google should pay $6 million in damages to a woman who said she suffered anxiety and depression due to social media addiction fostered by apps like Facebook and YouTube when she was a minor. 

Only a couple days earlier, a New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million in damages to the state, after finding the company liable for mental health problems linked to social media addiction among teens. 

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