Meta Refused to Settle Bellwether Social Media Addiction Case as Rivals Did — Plaintiff Withdrew Without Payment

Florida teen R.K.C. voluntarily dropped his bellwether social media addiction lawsuit against Meta on July 22, 2026, five days before trial in Los Angeles Superior Court, receiving no payment. Snap, TikTok, and YouTube all settled with the same plaintiff. Meta alone took the case to the eve of trial, where it planned to challenge his actual platform usage. The case was one of thousands pending nationally.