New Mexico court orders Meta to pay $567M more

The ruling raises Meta’s total penalty in the state to $942 million and imposes new limits on likes, notifications and teen screen time.

New Mexico has ordered Meta to pay another $567 million in a child safety case, on top of a $375 million penalty imposed in March. That brings the company’s total fines in the state to $942 million.

The ruling does more than add to the bill. It also orders changes to how Meta’s platforms operate in New Mexico, including limits on Like counts for minors, a pause on late-night push notifications, and a monthly usage cap for users under 18. As IT-PUB News points out, the case stands out because the court is not limiting itself to damages and is also trying to change platform features for young users in one state.

The court links Meta’s platforms to harm in New Mexico

According to the order, “significant numbers of people in New Mexico experience harm from Meta’s products” because of risks tied to sexual exploitation, disruption to education, and negative mental health outcomes.

The judge said Meta is not the only platform contributing to youth mental health problems in the state. Even so, he argued that its services play a significant role. He described the company’s impact as a public nuisance in New Mexico and said it must take steps to reduce that harm.

That is a key reason the case has drawn attention. The court is not just assigning financial responsibility — it is also trying to force changes in how social media works for minors.

New Mexico orders limits on likes, notifications and screen time

Under the order, Meta must remove Like counts or show them to children under 18 only with approval from a parent or guardian. The court also said push notifications for underage users in the state should be paused between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.

The judge also limited use by minors to 90 hours a month, or about three hours a day. The ruling is aimed at reducing the time young users spend on the platforms and curbing features that may encourage repeated checking.

These measures reach into everyday use, not just legal liability. For families and schools, the order reflects broader concern about how social media design can affect attention, sleep, and online behavior.

Meta says it will appeal the judgment

Meta said it will appeal. In an emailed statement, company spokesperson Andy Stone said the company works to keep people safe on its platforms and has been transparent about the difficulty of identifying and removing bad actors and harmful content.

Stone also said Meta remains confident in its record of protecting teens online and will continue defending itself against claims it says misrepresent the facts.

That response captures the core dispute in the case: whether Meta’s products are being unfairly blamed for harms that are harder to tie to any one platform, or whether the company failed to do enough to protect younger users.

The ruling adds to broader legal pressure on Meta

The New Mexico decision follows another loss for Meta in Los Angeles in March, where the court also found against the company over addictive patterns.

Meta is also facing several other cases across the US. One major case is a joint lawsuit brought by 33 states and consolidated in federal court in Oakland, California. Other states, including Tennessee, have filed their own cases.

So the New Mexico ruling does not look like an isolated fight. It is part of a wider push by state authorities to challenge how large social platforms are designed and how they affect children and teenagers.

For Meta, the $567 million addition is substantial by itself. But the more unusual part of the case is the attempt to reshape product behavior in one state — a legal approach that could matter in similar lawsuits elsewhere.