U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Meta Appeal, Vermont Youth Addiction Suit Continues

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a brief, unexplained order declining to hear Meta Platforms’ appeal against a Vermont state court ruling. The decision leaves in place the Vermont Supreme Court’s judgment that allows the attorney general’s lawsuit to proceed.

Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark alleges that Meta designed Instagram to exploit teenagers’ developing brains, creating addictive features that boost advertising revenue and harm mental health. Internal Meta studies cited in the case indicate that 13.5% of teen girls said Instagram worsened suicidal thoughts and 17% said it intensified eating‑disorder concerns.

Meta argued that Vermont lacked jurisdiction and that the case violated its due‑process rights, but the high court rejected those claims. The suit is part of a coordinated effort by 42 state attorneys general targeting major tech firms over youth‑safety concerns. Recent related rulings include a Massachusetts court ordering Meta to face a similar case and large civil penalties imposed on the company in New Mexico and California.

The ruling means the Vermont case will move forward in state court, where the parties will address the substantive claims that Instagram was deliberately engineered to be addictive to minors.