Ontario school boards have overcome a significant legal hurdle in their lawsuit against major social media platforms after a judge rejected a motion to dismiss the case. 

Ontario Superior Court Justice Janet Leiper ruled that the Toronto District School Board’s lawsuit, representing 14 Ontario school boards, has sufficient merit to proceed to trial, according to CBC.

The collective action targets Meta, Snapchat, and TikTok, alleging their platforms are “negligently designed” for compulsive use and have negatively impacted how children think, behave, and learn. The plaintiffs are seeking more than $8 billion in damages.

Alleged Educational Disruptions

As CBC notes, the lawsuits claim social media platforms have disrupted education by requiring administrators to spend more time addressing compulsive student social media use. 

They allege increased resources are being devoted to digital literacy, harm prevention, and handling issues like cyberbullying and online sexual harassment.

According to the plaintiffs, students struggle to identify misinformation, forcing teachers to help vet content from social media feeds and prevent students from adopting potentially harmful ideologies found on these platforms.

Companies Defend Platform Designs

Meta and Snapchat have responded to the allegations by highlighting their commitment to user well-being. 

A Snapchat spokesperson emphasized in a statement that their platform was “intentionally designed” to differ from traditional social media by opening directly to a camera rather than a content feed.

Meta released a statement claiming they have developed tools to support parents and teens, including protected Teen Accounts on Instagram, and that they “strongly disagree with the allegations.”

The school boards, operating under the name “Schools for Social Media Change,” have indicated they will not incur costs for the lawsuits unless successful. The group calls for companies to redesign their platforms to better protect students.

The three companies recently united in an initiative called “Thrive” to combat the spread of suicide and self-harm content across their platforms after mental health experts warned that social media may pose a profound risk to teen well-being.

All three participating companies have faced lawsuits alleging their platforms contributed to teen suicides. 

In early 2024, U.S. lawmakers put major social media platforms on blast for failing to protect children and teens. “We’ve known from the beginning that our efforts to protect children online would be met with hesitation from Big Tech,” the lawmakers stated at the time. “They are finally being forced to acknowledge their failures when protecting kids.”