Meta Back in a New Mexico Courtroom as Cambridge Analytica Case Goes to Trial

September 21, 2026

Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, is on trial again in New Mexico. This month a Santa Fe courtroom began hearing State of New Mexico v. Facebook, Inc., a case that goes back to the Cambridge Analytica data scandal of the 2016 election.

 

The trial comes only weeks after a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $942 million over harm to children on its platforms. Together, the two cases raise a question families keep asking: can you trust these platforms with your child's attention, well-being and personal information?

 

What the Cambridge Analytica Trial Is About

New Mexico's Attorney General alleges that Facebook broke the state's Unfair Practices Act. The claim is that Facebook allowed a personality quiz app to collect data from about 87 million users, and that the data ended up with Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting firm. The state says the firm used the data to build targeted political ads during the 2016 presidential race, and that about 350,000 New Mexicans were affected.

 

Former Attorney General Hector Balderas filed the case in 2021. Current Attorney General Raúl Torrez is now bringing it to trial before Judge Francis Matthew in the First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe. The trial is expected to last about four weeks, and Courtroom View Network is broadcasting it gavel to gavel.

 

Meta rejects the allegations. In court, the company has argued that the lawsuit rests on claims that are

"settled or debunked."

Meta has also accused the Attorney General's office of trying to limit its First Amendment rights. The jury has not reached a verdict, and the outcome is still open.

 

A Second Trial, Following a $942 Million Ruling

For families, this trial is part of a larger pattern. New Mexico has already won a major case against Meta about how its platforms affect young people.

 

In March 2026, a New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay a $375 million civil penalty in the state's child safety case. On August 7, 2026, the court added a $567 million judgment tied to the youth mental health crisis, for a total of $942 million. The state alleged that Meta built products it knew would fuel addiction and deepen a youth mental health crisis, then misled parents about the risks.

 

The court also ordered Meta to change how its platforms treat minors for five years. The required changes include:

 

  • Stronger age verification and more protection for teen accounts
  • No overnight push notifications for users under 18
  • Hidden "like" counts by default
  • Mandatory time-use limits for minors
  • Clear disclosures about the risks of using the platforms

 

Several of these changes aim at the same design features that keep young users scrolling late into the night.

 

Why This Matters for Your Family

The two New Mexico cases deal with different conduct. One is about how user data was handled. The other is about how platform design affects children's mental health. Both ask whether a company told the public the truth about what its products do to the people who use them.

 

Many parents don't learn how much social media has affected their child until the harm is serious. Families have described:

 

  • Depression and severe anxiety
  • Body dysmorphia
  • Eating disorders, including anorexia and bulimia
  • Suicidal thoughts or self-harm
  • Compulsive use that a child can't control

 

If you or your child used Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat or YouTube heavily as a minor and later developed any of these conditions, you may have options. Lawsuits across the country are now testing whether social media companies can be held accountable for designing products that harm young users.

 

How Jason Joy Law Can Help

We represent families and young adults harmed by social media platforms. We know that many parents worry about their child's privacy when they reach out, and we treat every conversation with care and discretion.

 

To learn more about who may qualify and what these cases involve, visit our Social Media Harm page, or call (888) 241-7367 for a free, confidential case evaluation.

 

Meeting these criteria does not guarantee representation or compensation. Each case is evaluated on its individual merits.

 

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