Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
Teens and young adults are particularly vulnerable to the catastrophic effects of social media addiction, including depression, self-harm, eating disorders, suicidal ideation, and injury of suicide. Social media companies such as Meta have designed their platforms to be addictive, putting profits over the safety of their users. The Lanier Law Firm is helping victims fight back through social media addiction lawsuits.
Social media has become addictive, and companies behind platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok know it. They also know that social media addiction is destroying the fabric of society and causing serious mental health issues, especially in its youngest, most impressionable users.
Despite this, social media companies have made their platforms even more addictive and failed to disclose potential risks.
If you or your child have experienced serious mental health issues because of social media addiction, now is the time to stand up and take action. You may have the right to file a social media addiction lawsuit and hold the billion-dollar social media giants accountable for the harm and suffering they’ve caused.
The experienced personal injury attorneys at The Lanier Law Firm are ready to help you make things right.
Since 1990, our award-winning trial attorneys have gained national recognition for taking on powerhouse adversaries and winning billions of dollars in compensation for clients like you.
Call our law offices, conveniently located in Los Angeles, Houston, and New York, to arrange a time for a free, no-obligation case evaluation to learn more.
Social media companies such as Meta and Google don’t care about you or your children. They care about money. When taking on these giants, you’ll need an advocate in your corner with the resources and experience to match.
That’s why you should call The Lanier Law Firm for help with your social media lawsuit. We’re not afraid to take on billion-dollar corporations or powerful defendants. In fact, we do it on behalf of our clients every day.
Founder Mark Lanier and seasoned product liability attorneys Rachel Lanier and Michael A. Akselrud understand just how devastating the effects of social media addiction can be, and they genuinely care about the clients they represent.
We’re ready to be your family’s most passionate advocate and fight tooth and nail until you’re awarded the compensation you need and deserve.
What is social media addiction?
Social media addiction is characterized by the compulsive urge to spend time on social media. Our brains release feel-good chemicals when we engage on social media. The more we engage, the better we feel. So, we keep coming back for more.
It’s no different than becoming addicted to nicotine, alcohol, or gambling. Over time, it takes increasing amounts of the thing that’s making us feel good to satisfy us. That’s why we begin to experience a compulsive urge to check social media.
While adults can become addicted to social media and experience adverse effects, the most significant problems tend to be seen in kids, teens, and young adults.
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Legally Reviewed By: Michael A. Akselrud
- Last Modified March 16, 2023
Why You’ll Want The Lanier Law Firm to Handle Your Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
What is social media addiction?
Algorithms Feed Social Media Addiction
Social Media Companies Know Their Platforms are Addictive — and They Don’t Care
Who can file a social media lawsuit?
What compensation can I recover in a social media addiction lawsuit?
Call The Lanier Law Firm to Discuss Your Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
Signs of social media addiction, particularly in teenagers, include:
- Increased screen time and time spent on social media platforms
- Constantly checking social media, especially first thing in the morning
- Staying up late scrolling social media
- Anxiety related to extended breaks from or the inability to check social media
- Using social media as a “pick me up” when you’re feeling blue
- Spending less time with friends, family, and peers in person
- Spending less time engaging in enjoyable activities
- Changes in personal relationships
- Struggling at work or school
- Creating fake social media accounts or hiding social media accounts from friends or parents
- Marked changes in mood, behavior, and overall health
If you’ve experienced these symptoms or recognize them in your teenager, speak with a licensed mental health professional about your social media use.
You may also want to speak with an experienced social media addiction lawyer, as you may have the right to take legal action if you’ve suffered any ill effects.
Algorithms Feed Social Media Addiction
Companies behind social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok are billion-dollar entities. These platforms are free to use, so the companies make their money on advertising. The more time users spend scrolling their social media feeds, the more money the companies make.
So, there’s an incentive to make users crave social media and keep them coming back for more.
You’ve probably heard about algorithms, which are essentially a list of instructions that tells the social platform which content to serve to users based on their interests and behaviors on social media. In theory, the algorithms should individualize each user’s experience and provide relevant content, filtering out what they don’t want to see.
In reality, the more we see content we like or that evokes an emotional response, the more likely it becomes that we spend more time scrolling social media.
Further, the more “likes” we get on posts and the more notifications we receive, the more addictive social media becomes. These things release dopamine — the feel-good chemical — and make us crave more.
Social media companies understand this and have taken algorithms to an entirely new level, using them to make their products intentionally addictive.
The more time that people — particularly kids, teens, and young adults — spend on social media, the more likely it becomes that they’ll suffer from depression, anxiety, suicidal ideations, and other mental health problems.
In fact, social media addiction statistics indicate that teenagers who spend three or more hours online are at an increased risk of these issues. The average teen spends three hours and one minute using social media, and some log as many as seven hours online.
Social Media Companies Know Their Platforms are Addictive — and They Don’t Care
Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, among others, are built to be addictive.
According to Facebook’s former director of monetization, Tim Kendall, Facebook knowingly made its social media platform “as addictive as cigarettes.”
In an interview, Kendall acknowledged that Facebook’s objective is to “get more people to pay attention to your product and to pay attention longer each and every day.” The company created algorithms to make this happen, essentially luring vulnerable and impressionable teenagers onto the platform.
Kendall called Facebook “fundamentally addictive” and admitted that “it’s causing all kinds of mental health issues … [and] eroding aspects of society.”
Kendall’s sentiments were confirmed by Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, who testified before the U.S. Committee on Science, Commerce, and Transportation on October 4, 2021.
In her testimony, she explained that Facebook executives “repeatedly encountered conflicts between its own profits and our safety” and “consistently resolved those conflicts in favor of its own profits.”
Simply put, social media companies knowingly prioritize profits over the health and well-being of their users.
Who can file a social media lawsuit?
Social media lawsuits have taken the nation by storm, with more than 1,200 families (and counting) taking legal action.
You may have the right to file a social media addiction lawsuit if:
- You spend three or more hours using social media every day.
- Your social media addiction began before you turned 21.
- Social media addiction has caused psychological or physical harm, including suicide, attempted suicide, self-harm, depression, anxiety, and/or eating disorders.
- You have sought or received treatment for said psychological or physical harm.
If your child has become addicted to social media and experienced serious mental health problems or physical harm, you may also have the right to file a lawsuit on their behalf.
What compensation can I recover in a social media addiction lawsuit?
The potential consequences of social media addiction can impact every aspect of a victim’s life. For teens, the effects can last a lifetime.
Body dysmorphia and eating disorders can cause severe damage to the body. Bullying and attempts to commit suicide can have detrimental effects on a person’s physical and mental health.
Depression, anxiety, and ADHD can fundamentally change the course of a young person’s life, driving them away from friends and family and onto dangerous paths.
Through a social media addiction lawsuit, you can demand compensation for the financial, physical, and emotional consequences you’ve endured.
Potential damages can include money for:
- Current and future medical bills
- Cognitive behavioral therapy
- Dialectical behavior therapy
- In-patient therapy services
- Lost job opportunities
- Reduced earning capacity
- Emotional distress
- Embarrassment
- Damage to reputation
- Wrongful death of a family member
You can also send a clear message to social media companies by seeking punitive damages, which can be awarded when there’s clear and convincing evidence that they intentionally caused harm or knowingly failed to disclose the risks associated with their apps and platforms.
Your lawsuit is an opportunity to hold these money- and power-hungry corporations accountable for their actions, while protecting future users from the same fate in the process.
Call The Lanier Law Firm to Discuss Your Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
Social media is deliberately designed to be addictive. With addiction comes the risk of serious physical and mental health problems, including suicidal tendencies, eating disorders, and distorted self image.
Whether you’re personally struggling with social media addiction or caring for a teen or young adult who has become addicted, you shouldn’t have to bear this burden on your own.
Social media giants created this epidemic. They must be held accountable. The Lanier Law Firm is ready to stand beside you and fight for the justice you deserve.
We’re continually recognized as some of the most compelling, compassionate, and successful trial attorneys in the nation. Now we’re ready to invest our considerable experience and resources in your social media addiction lawsuit.
Call our law office in Los Angeles, California, to get started. You’ll have limited time to take action, so it’s important to reach out to our compassionate legal team as soon as you can.
We’re standing by 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Call to schedule a free consultation today.
Why You’ll Want The Lanier Law Firm to Handle Your Social Media Addiction Lawsuit