Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, has reached a settlement in a lawsuit accusing the platform of being deliberately engineered to hook young users, abruptly ending a bellwether trial that was set to open in Los Angeles. The deal, disclosed Monday by attorneys for the plaintiffs, comes just two days before jury selection was to begin, and it spares Snap CEO Evan Spiegel from a highly anticipated courtroom appearance.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but both sides expressed satisfaction. A Snap spokesperson said the company is "pleased to have been able to resolve this matter in an amicable manner," while plaintiffs' attorneys hailed the outcome as a step toward holding social media firms accountable for harm to minors.
The case, which had been consolidated from two separate lawsuits, was one of the first to go to trial amid a wave of litigation against social media giants over youth mental health. The plaintiffs—identified only as "S.J.," a teenager from Illinois, and "K.D.B.," a woman from Mississippi—alleged that features like Snapstreaks, Snapscore, filters, and push notifications were designed to encourage compulsive use, leading to anxiety, depression, and even self-harm.
K.D.B.'s legal team, led by John Morgan of Morgan & Morgan and attorney Emily Jeffcott, said in a statement that they are "proud to have achieved justice for our bellwether clients so far." They added: "Our ultimate goal is to hold these social media companies accountable for how their actions have impacted millions of children across the country, and these settlements allow us to keep building toward that goal."
Joseph VanZandt, who represented S.J. at the Beasley Allen Law Firm, said the settlement "secures real results for S.J. and her family." He emphasized that the fight is far from over. "This litigation has always been about making social media safer for kids, and nothing about these resolutions slows that work," VanZandt said. "We will be back in a courtroom in March, and we will keep going until these platforms are safe for the children who use them."
The settlement follows a similar agreement last week between Meta and K.D.B., which removed Meta as a codefendant just days before the trial. S.J. had already settled her claims against Meta the previous week. These deals mean that neither Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg nor Instagram head Adam Mosseri will testify in this particular case, though they could still face questioning in future trials.
The next batch of bellwether cases is scheduled for trial in March 2027, and plaintiffs' attorneys have signaled they intend to keep pressing. The legal battles over social media addiction are far from over, with more lawsuits pending in courts across the country.
Snap, for its part, defended its platform's design. "Snapchat was built to encourage real conversations with real friends," a company spokesperson said. "We've built safeguards, launched safety tutorials, and partnered with experts. Because safety is never finished, we remain committed to continually strengthening the safety, privacy, and well-being of our community."
The settlement is the latest in a series of legal victories for social media plaintiffs, but it also highlights the difficulty of proving causation in such cases. Critics argue that settlements allow companies to avoid public scrutiny of their internal design decisions, while supporters say they provide tangible relief for affected families.
As the third bellwether trial approaches, the pressure on platforms like Snap and Meta to change their practices is likely to intensify. Lawmakers have also taken note, with some proposing new regulations and others questioning whether tech profits should fund social programs.
