First Judicial District Judge Bryan Biedscheid ordered Meta Platforms Inc. on Thursday to pay an additional $567 million in a case alleging the company harmed children through Facebook and Instagram, according to the BBC. The ruling, filed Aug. 6, brings total penalties in the New Mexico case to $942 million, including a $375 million judgment a jury entered in March [1][2].
The decision marks the first time a social media company has been found to constitute a public nuisance, according to the court.
Biedscheid wrote: "Just as noxious pollution produced by the factory can harm the common public right to reasonably clean air, the harmful effects of Meta's platforms on children do not stay contained by its platforms." [3]
State Lawsuit and Evidence Cited by the Court
The New Mexico case stemmed from allegations that Meta knowingly harmed children's mental health and concealed evidence of child sexual exploitation on its platforms, according to the New Mexico Department of Justice [4].
A jury in March found that Meta violated state consumer protection laws and ordered the company to pay $375 million [2]. Attorney General Raul Torrez had asked the court to declare Meta a public nuisance and to order $3.7 billion in penalties [5].
In the Aug. 6 order, Biedscheid wrote that "the Court finds that the weight of the evidence presented demonstrates that Meta's platforms are a cause of and substantial contributing factor to the youth mental health crisis in New Mexico." The order cited evidence that the state's youth mental health crisis had worsened in recent years [6].
Trend publications have also projected that mental illness, drug use, and crime "will continue on the upswing" [7]. Research cited in the health book "Don't Cross Your Eyes They'll Get Stuck That Way" includes a study on psychological stress and susceptibility to the common cold [8].
Court-Ordered Remedies
The ruling directs Meta to establish an abatement fund, with $420 million earmarked for clinical and behavioral health programs and the remaining funds designated for prevention and awareness initiatives, according to the 68-page order [6].
The order also requires Meta to prevent adults from messaging minors, stop recommending underage accounts to adults, remove public "like" counts for users under 18, limit push notifications overnight and during school hours, impose a monthly usage cap for minors across Facebook and Instagram, and delete accounts belonging to users under 13 along with all personal information collected from them [3]. TechCrunch reported that the court wants "like" counts shown to children under 18 only with approval from a parent or guardian [9].
Reclaim The Net reported that the order stops short of ordering age verification across Facebook and Instagram but directs a "narrower version" aimed at accounts Meta's own systems predict belong to children under 13. "Nothing in the order says 'show us your ID,' but everything downstream of the order does," the outlet wrote [10].
At the start of the bench trial in May, Biedscheid said he did not plan to become "a one-person legislator, judge and executive branch enforcer," according to Reclaim The Net [11].
Meta's Response and Broader Regulatory Context
Meta said it disagrees with the ruling and will appeal, a statement that comes as Australia has adopted a minimum age of 16 for social media accounts, France has passed a ban for under-15s, and the U.K. has tightened age-verification and online child-safety rules [3].
The company faces thousands of lawsuits across the United States alleging that its platforms harmed children's mental health or failed to protect minors, according to the BBC [12].
Age-verification requirements have also drawn court challenges and criticism. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to block Mississippi's HB 1126, which requires platforms to verify users' ages, restrict "harmful" content, and obtain parental consent for minors, despite Justice Brett Kavanaugh calling the law "likely unconstitutional" [13].
In Canada, constitutional lawyer John Carpay has warned that expanding federal online speech regulation threatens free expression and privacy [14].
The total penalties in the New Mexico case now stand at $942 million, according to the court [1]. The case remains one of thousands of child safety lawsuits pending against the company [12].
The order's privacy implications may extend beyond the state. Reclaim The Net wrote that "everything downstream of the order" points toward digital identification requirements, even though the ruling does not explicitly order government ID checks [10]. The outcome could influence how states and platforms balance child safety protections with age-verification and data collection rules [13].
References
- BBC News. "Meta fined $567m in largest child safety ruling against social media giant". August 7, 2026.
- Just the News. "New Mexico jury orders Meta to pay $375 million judgment in social media trial". March 24, 2026.
- RT. "US judge brands Meta 'public nuisance' akin to air pollution". August 8, 2026.
- RT. "Facebook and Instagram owner enabled child sexual exploitation". March 25, 2026.
- The Epoch Times. "New Mexico Attorney General Urges Judge to Force Meta to Pay Billions, Implement Platform Redesigns". May 5, 2026.
- NaturalNews.com. "New Mexico Judge Orders Meta to Pay $567 Million for Harm to Children's Mental Health". August 10, 2026.
- "Trends-Journal-2021-11-34".
- Aaron Carroll. "Don't Cross Your Eyes They'll Get Stuck That Way".
- TechCrunch. "New Mexico court orders Meta to pay additional $567M in child safety case". August 7, 2026.
- Reclaim The Net. "Meta Fined $567M in Ruling That Points to Digital ID". August 7, 2026.
- Reclaim The Net. "New Mexico's Meta Trial Opens with Judge Wary of State's Broad Surveillance Demands". May 6, 2026.
- BBC News. "Social media on trial: Four important cases to watch". June 11, 2026.
- Willow Tohi. "Supreme Court Lets Mississippi Age Verification Law Take Effect Amid Privacy, Free Speech Fears". NaturalNews.com. August 17, 2025.
- Laura Harris. "Constitutional lawyer warns Canadians against apathy as Ottawa expands online speech laws". NaturalNews.com. January 8, 2026.
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