Two Australian firms to launch class action against Meta

Now, The Australian reports that law firm MinterEllison has had its first case management hearing in its claim in Federal Court on Tuesday.

Shine Lawyers were also at the hearing to alert MinterEllison and Federal Court judge Ian Jackman that it was set to file a similar claim in Victoria.

Justice Jackman questioned whether MinterEllison was casting its claim “too widely”.

“The heartland of your case may well be psychiatric injury, just as Shine Lawyers will contemplate that as the focus of their case,” he said.

“But there were some peripheral features of the case. One of which struck me – maybe I’ve misread it – that (you) claimed, among other things, damages for people who were disappointed that they didn’t have a more useful, pleasurable and entertaining experience on Facebook.”

Shine was ordered to file its originating application or pleadings with both the Victorian and Federal courts when it launches its claim. The Federal case will return on February 24.

Shine case against Meta

Shine told The Australian: “We’re continuing to investigate a potential class action against Meta and other social media companies, and we intend to file in Victoria in the coming months."

The firm is representing Australian filmmaker Clare McCann, whose 13-year-old son Atreyu McCann took his own life just five months before Albanese's social media ban came into effect. 

“Atreyu was using a child-protected phone during this time and what I understood to be an age-appropriate social media platform. Like so many parents, I believed the protections surrounding children’s accounts meant something,” Ms McCann said. 

“I believed that once he was home, he would be safe.

“Atreyu did not stand a chance against algorithms that could follow him home, making the place I believed would be his sanctuary from schoolyard bullying feel like another trap he could not escape.

“I hope this investigation brings proper scrutiny and accountability to some of the most powerful social media companies in the world.

“More importantly, I hope what we learn leads to safeguards that actually protect children and saves lives, so no other family has to experience this preventable grief.”