Meta Ordered to Pay New Mexico $25 Billion

Judge Francis Mathew on October 21, 2026 ordered Meta to pay New Mexico $25 billion after a Santa Fe jury found the company misled the public on privacy and counted 43,899,720 consumer-protection violations. Mathew found more than $219 billion warranted under a $5,000-per-violation law, then reduced it to $25 billion, about $569 each. He wrote that Facebook's wrongdoing over the course of years and systematically broadcast to the public goes to the heart of Facebook's core business practices. At an October 1 hearing Randi McGinn sought $35-40 billion, saying the court should speak to Meta in the only language it understands, money and the value of its stock price. Meta argued for a cap near $3.4 billion. Raúl Torrez said the law directs all of the money to New Mexico's school system and that the state may have paid for schools for the next 100 years, though funds would be tied up if Meta appeals as expected. He called the award one of the largest state verdicts against a company in American history and said it has been a long time coming holding Big Tech accountable. New Mexico sued in 2021 after 48 other states settled related claims. Coverage links the case to Cambridge Analytica data from up to 87 million Facebook users. After the September verdict Meta said it disagreed and would continue to defend itself.