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Securities-Related Matters
On November 11, 2021, we, and certain of our officers, were named as defendants in a federal securities class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The lawsuit was purportedly brought on behalf of purchasers of our Class A common stock. The lawsuit alleges that we and certain of our officers made false or misleading statements and omissions concerning the impact that Apple’s App Tracking Transparency framework would have on our business. Plaintiffs sought monetary damages and other relief. We recently settled this case. The Court granted final approval of the settlement and dismissed the action on April 24, 2026.
On August 21, 2025, we, and certain of our officers, were named as defendants in a federal securities class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The lawsuit was purportedly brought on behalf of purchasers of our Class A common stock. The lawsuit alleges that we and certain of our officers made false or misleading statements concerning an ad platform change that impacted revenue in the first half of 2025. Plaintiffs seek monetary damages and other relief. In December 2025, the plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed the case which may be refiled in the future. We believe we have meritorious defenses to the claims, and will defend it vigorously, but litigation is inherently uncertain, and an unfavorable outcome could seriously harm our business.
Platform-Related Matters
Beginning on January 20, 2022, we were named as a defendant in various federal and state courts by plaintiffs alleging that the design and use of our platform, and those of our competitors, is addictive and harmful to users, with most of the cases focused on mental health harms and users under 18-years old. The majority of cases have been consolidated in either a federal Multi-District Litigation pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, or MDL, or a California Judicial Council Coordinated Proceeding, or JCCP, pending in the Complex Division of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. Trials for the individual plaintiff bellwether cases in the JCCP started in January 2026. Snap reached a confidential settlement agreement resolving the first and second JCCP bellwether trials for Snap. The next two JCCP bellwether trials including Snap are scheduled to begin in October 2026. A putative class action asserting similar allegations was also filed in Canada and Israel.
Numerous school districts, municipalities and tribal nations have filed public nuisance and other claims based on similar allegations, which also were consolidated in either the MDL or JCCP. In the JCCP proceeding, the court dismissed the school district and municipality plaintiffs’ claims without prejudice, which ruling is now on appeal. Some of those dismissed plaintiffs have refiled their claims in the MDL or other venues. In June 2026, Snap reached a settlement agreement resolving the first school district case set for trial. The trial date for the next school district trials including Snap is scheduled for February 2027. We have received similar claims in Canada.
Beginning on January 30, 2024, certain U.S. state attorneys general have filed lawsuits against us making similar allegations as well as allegations regarding harmful and mature content, child safety concerns, sexual exploitation of minors, misuse by bad actors, unlawful data collection, privacy violations, and allegedly misleading safety and marketing campaigns. These lawsuits assert various legal claims, including violations of state consumer protection laws, unfair and deceptive business practices, product liability, negligence, public nuisance, and unjust enrichment. Trials are scheduled to begin in the Nevada and New Mexico attorneys general actions in August 2027.
On October 13, 2022, we were named as a defendant in a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging that we should be responsible for the deaths of young people who died from ingesting fatal doses of fentanyl after allegedly communicating on Snapchat with drug dealers concerning drug transactions. Other similar lawsuits were filed on behalf of other families, which were coordinated with the first-filed case and assigned to the same judge. On January 2, 2024, the judge granted in part and overruled in part our demurrer to the lawsuit, allowing several of the claims to proceed.
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On July 24, 2025, a lawsuit was filed against Roblox and Snap alleging that a minor had met a stranger on Roblox and became an alleged victim of sexual exploitation occurring on both Roblox and Snapchat. Similar lawsuits have been filed by additional families, including against other platforms. In December 2025, a federal Multi-District Litigation proceeding was formed to coordinate similar cases that had been filed in federal court. There are separate cases proceeding in state court that have been consolidated into a JCCP. In all of these matters, the victim is alleged to have met a stranger on Roblox followed by exploitation allegedly occurring on Roblox or another platform, such as Snapchat, Instagram, or Discord.
We believe we have meritorious defenses to these lawsuits, and plan to continue to defend them vigorously, but litigation is inherently uncertain and an unfavorable outcome, including substantial potential damages, penalties, fines and injunctive relief, could seriously harm our business.
We are also subject to government investigations, inquiries, and notifications of potential litigation from multiple regulators in various jurisdictions globally concerning the use of our products and features, and the alleged mental and physical health and safety impacts on users, in particular younger users. For example, on March 26, 2026, the European Commission initiated proceedings under the European Union Digital Services Act, or DSA, to investigate Snap’s compliance with certain obligations applicable to very large online platforms, including with respect to systemic risk assessments and mitigation measures and protections for minors in the European Union. The proceeding is at an early stage and we are cooperating with the European Commission. At this time, we are unable to predict the outcome of this matter or reasonably estimate a range of possible loss, if any. The proceeding could, however, result in findings that we have not complied with the DSA, the imposition of significant fines, and orders requiring us to implement additional or different measures, modify or cease certain product features or practices in the European Union, or otherwise change our business practices. We plan to continue to engage with the regulators productively and believe we have meritorious defenses to any legal proceedings that may arise out of these investigations and inquiries, but any legal proceedings that may arise are inherently uncertain and an unfavorable outcome, including substantial potential damages, penalties, fines and injunctive relief, could seriously harm our business. Any violation of existing or future regulatory orders or consent decrees, or new regulatory investigations or proceedings, could subject us to substantial monetary fines and other penalties that could seriously harm our business.
On September 15, 2025, Snap filed a complaint against its insurance carriers in San Francisco Superior Court seeking declaratory relief regarding Snap’s entitlement to insurance coverage for claims alleging that use of Snapchat has caused bodily injury or property damage. On March 26, 2026, the insurance carriers filed answers and many carriers filed cross-complaints alleging that they have no duty to defend or indemnify Snap for some or all of these claims. Snap has filed a motion to stay this litigation with its insurers pending litigation of the underlying claims implicating coverage, and this motion is set to be heard on August 6, 2026.
We are currently involved in, and may in the future be involved in, legal proceedings, claims, inquiries, and investigations in the ordinary course of our business, including claims for infringing intellectual property rights related to our products and the content contributed by our users and partners and claims by consumer advocacy and privacy groups in international jurisdictions alleging violations of consumer protection, privacy, data localization, and minor safety laws. Although the results of these proceedings, claims, inquiries, and investigations cannot be predicted with certainty, we do not believe that the final outcome of these matters is reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations. Regardless of final outcomes, however, any such proceedings, claims, inquiries, and investigations may nonetheless impose a significant burden on management and employees and may come with costly defense costs or unfavorable preliminary and interim rulings.
For information regarding legal proceedings in which we are involved, see other sections of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including sections titled Note 8, “Commitments and Contingencies,” in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, “Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” and “Risk Factors,” which are incorporated by reference.
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