State appeals in Snapchat fight

James Uthmeier [Photo courtesy Office of the Attorney General]

Attorneys for the state have appealed after a federal judge last week rejected a request for a temporary injunction to force the operator of Snapchat to comply with a 2024 Florida law aimed at keeping children off certain social-media platforms.

The state appealed U.S. District Judge Mark Walker’s ruling to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. As is common, an initial notice of appeal did not detail arguments the state will make at the Atlanta-based court.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed the lawsuit in April alleging that Snap Inc. had violated the law, which seeks to prevent children under age 16 from opening accounts on certain platforms — though it would allow parents to give consent for 14- and 15-year-olds to have accounts. Children under 14 could not open accounts.

But in rejecting the state’s request for a temporary injunction, Walker pointed to a ruling he issued in June in a separate case about the social-media law. In that case, which was filed by the tech-industry groups NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association, Walker ruled that the law was likely unconstitutional and issued a preliminary injunction to block it.

Uthmeier also has appealed that ruling to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.