A Los Angeles judge just forced the biggest names in social media into a legal hot seat. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, and Instagram head Adam Mosseri must testify in January at the first trial over social media's harmful effects on children. The ruling marks a watershed moment in the years-long battle over platform accountability.
The gavel just came down on Silicon Valley's biggest names. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl delivered a blow to Meta and Snap Monday, ordering their CEOs to appear in person for what's being called the first major test case on social media's impact on children.
Mark Zuckerberg, Evan Spiegel, and Instagram's Adam Mosseri now face mandatory testimony in January's "bellweather trial" - a proceeding that could set the tone for hundreds of similar cases nationwide. The executives had desperately tried to avoid the witness stand, but Judge Kuhl wasn't buying their arguments.
"The testimony of a CEO is uniquely relevant, as that officer's knowledge of harms, and failure to take available steps to avoid such harms could establish negligence or ratification of negligent conduct," Kuhl wrote in her ruling, first reported by Law360.
The judge's reasoning cuts to the heart of the allegations. Plaintiffs claim these platforms deliberately engineered features to "be addictive" and "drive compulsive" behaviors in minors. Only the top executives, Kuhl argued, possess the institutional knowledge needed to prove whether companies knew about these harms and chose profits over protection.
Meta had pushed hard against the testimony requirement, arguing that forcing both Zuckerberg and Mosseri to appear would "interfere with business" and create a dangerous precedent for other trials. The company wanted plaintiffs to rely on previous depositions instead of fresh courtroom testimony.
Snap took an even more aggressive stance, with legal representation from Kirkland & Ellis calling the order an "abuse of discretion." But their post-ruling statement reveals the uphill battle ahead: "We look forward to the opportunity to explain why Plaintiffs' allegations against Snapchat are wrong factually and as a matter of law."
The January trial represents the culmination of mounting pressure on social platforms over child safety. Just this month, New York City filed its own lawsuit against multiple companies, arguing they created addictive platforms contributing to mental health crises among children.
