A turning point in accountability? SA expert hails ‘landmark’ R51m child harm ruling against Meta and YouTube

2026-03-26 - 09:01

Social media law expert Emma Sadleir has expressed hope that an R51 million ruling against tech giants Meta and YouTube could be a “turning point in platform accountability”. A California Jury found the companies liable for $3 million (R51 million) in damages on Wednesday, in a case brought by a young woman named Kaley. After more than 40 hours of deliberation across nine days, jurors found that Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp, and Google, owner of YouTube, intentionally built addictive social media platforms that harmed the 20-year old’s mental health. The jury also decided each company’s negligence was a substantial factor in causing harm to Kaley, who said her use of social media as a child addicted her to the technology and exacerbated her mental health struggles. Meta and YouTube were the two remaining defendants in the case after TikTok and Snap each settled before the trial began. The matter, along with several others, has been randomly selected as a bellwether trial, meaning its outcome could impact how thousands of similar lawsuits filed against social media companies play out. ‘Landmark moment’ Sadleir described it as a “landmark moment”. Hopefully, this is a turning point in platform accountability. These companies have prioritised profits over children for far too long,” she told The Citizen. She said the pressure from these cases will force social media companies to improve the design of their platforms. “Parents around the world should be celebrating!” she added. ALSO READ: ‘We have no control over YouTube, Facebook and X’ – Misinformation and disinformation discussed in parliament ‘A vehicle, not an outcome’ This is the second verdict to come in this week against Meta after a jury in New Mexico determined the company harms children’s mental health and safety, violating state law. Laura Marquez-Garrett, an attorney with the Social Media Victims Law Centre and the counsel of record for Kaley, said this trial was “a vehicle, not an outcome” during deliberations, according to AFP. “This case is historic no matter what happens because it was the first,” Marquez-Garrett said, emphasising the gravity of getting Meta and Google’s internal documents into the public record. Appeal Marquez-Garrett said social media companies are “not taking the cancerous talcum powder off the shelves,” likely in reference to a past case that Lanier and his firm worked on, securing a multi-billion-dollar verdict. “And they’re not going to because they’re making too much money killing kids.” Meta and Google separately said they disagreed with the verdict and would appeal the ruling. Child porn In July 2025, Meta agreed to permanently delete more than 60 WhatsApp channels publishing child pornography involving South African school children and to comply with all requirements of an earlier high court order. Meta was found in contempt of court of an earlier ruling in urgent litigation brought by the Digital Law Company (DLC) led by Sadleir. NOW READ: Google to study Competition Commission report on R500m payment