Meta faces ‘astronomical’ consequences as legal fight reaches critical moment in California

CNBC Jonathan Vanian – 17aug2026.

Key Points

Less than two weeks after a loss in New Mexico, Meta faces a much bigger legal test in a case being co-led by California’s attorney general over alleged harms to children and teens.

Opening arguments in AG Rob Bonta’s case against Meta begin on Tuesday, as more states try to force the social media company to make design changes to Facebook and Instagram.

“You could wake up with a headline judgment that is, as I’ve said, astronomical,” New Mexico AG Raúl Torrez told CNBC, fresh off a victory against Meta in his state.

If New Mexico created the blueprint for taking on Meta California could determine the company’s fate when it comes to critical changes at Facebook and Instagram.

Opening arguments begin Tuesday in the trial that California Attorney General Rob Bonta is co-leading against Meta, following a litany of allegations that the company fostered addictive behavior in teens and children. The jury was seated last week in Oakland’s federal courthouse.

The trial involves a coalition of 29 state attorneys general in a unified case against Meta that was brought in 2023, and will be argued by lawyers representing California, Colorado, New Jersey and Kentucky. The stakes are enormous as leading government officials across the country push for Meta to be held accountable for allegedly violating federal and state laws, including the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, and various consumer protection statutes.

Industry experts are calling it social media’s “Big Tobacco” moment, with Meta as the centerpiece. In the 1990s, tobacco companies were forced to pay billions of dollars for misleading the public about the safety and potential harms of their products, and subsequently saw their power and influence dramatically diminished.