Arkansas expects millions from Meta settlement. Here’s where other social media cases stand.
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The state will receive millions from last week's settlement, but still has a number of cases against other social media giants pending.
This article was originally published by Arkansas Advocate.
Arkansas is on track to receive at least $172 million in a landmark multistate settlement over online child safety. But the state’s other cases against social media platforms are still winding through the courts.
Attorney General Tim Griffin and Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders have been pushing for more scrutiny on social media firms through lawsuits and legislation. The Republicans hailed the settlement with the parent company of Facebook and Instagram as a win for that effort.
Meta’s $17.1 billion settlement with 51 attorneys general requires the company to enact new safety measures. The agreement requires court approval.
Here’s a look at where the state’s other cases involving social media stand:
TikTok
Griffin in 2023 filed lawsuits against TikTok in Cleburne and Union counties, accusing the social media platform of misleading parents about the availability of mature content.
The lawsuits accused TikTok of violating the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
TikTok argued that the lawsuit was barred by Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which protects Internet companies from being sued because of users’ posts.
But a Cleburne County judge rejected TikTok’s motion to dismiss the case, and a trial is scheduled in March 2027. The Union County case is also pending but a trial date has not been set.
Google/YouTube
A 2024 lawsuit Griffin filed in Phillips County against YouTube, Google and their parent companies accuse them of intentionally targeting children with addictive and harmful content.
A judge rejected the companies’ argument that the case should be dismissed because of the Communications Decency Act’s protections. That decision has been appealed and is pending before the Arkansas Court of Appeals.
Snapchat
Griffin in June filed a lawsuit against Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, claiming that the California-based company’s social media platform was deceptively designed to addict minors who used it.
Snap has sought to move the case, which was originally filed in Phillips County, to federal court. The attorney general has filed a motion to move the case back to Phillips County.
Discord/Roblox
A June lawsuit Griffin filed in a Los Angeles court accuses the social gaming platforms Discord and Roblox of putting children at risk of sexual predation.
The lawsuit accuses the platforms of violating the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act and Public Nuisance Law.
A hearing in the case has been scheduled for November.
Social Media Restrictions
The lawsuits are progressing as Arkansas is defending its reworked law that would have required age verification to create new social media accounts.
A 2023 version of the law was struck down as unconstitutional. A federal judge in April temporarily blocked enforcement of a new version approved in 2025.
The state has appealed that decision to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is expected to hear arguments in the case next month.
The blocked law also includes other restrictions, including a requirement for social media platforms to maintain certain default settings for minors.
Another appeal pending before the 8th Circuit concerns a 2025 law that makes it easier for parents to sue social media platforms.
A federal judge in December blocked the law, which allows parents to sue social media platforms if exposure to content on their sites results in their child developing eating disorders, committing or attempting suicide, or becoming addicted to the platform’s feeds. The state appealed that ruling.