A judge in Essex County rejected TikTok’s attempt to shut down New Jersey’s lawsuit , clearing the way for the state to pursue claims that the platform harms young users through addictive design and misleading business practices.
Superior Court Judge Lisa M. Adubato said the state made a strong enough case to move forward.
Her ruling found that TikTok may have violated consumer protection laws and rejected the company’s arguments that it’s shielded by federal law or outside the court’s jurisdiction.
TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, are facing accusations of intentionally designing the app to keep children and teens hooked.
The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office alleged that the social media platform uses features like infinite scroll, autoplay, beauty filters, and push n