Products Liability Claims Against Digital Platforms Ignore Arbitration Agreements
publication | June 9, 2026
Westlaw Today published an article by Hollingsworth LLP attorneys Grant Hollingsworth, Olivia Sacks, and Alexa Halkias analyzing the pivotal role of agreements to arbitrate in the new wave of products liability litigation targeting social media and gaming companies who operate online platforms.
The article addresses the recent trend of strict liability, negligent design defect, and failure to warn claims asserted by plaintiffs against online platforms such as Meta (Facebook and Instagram), YouTube, Snapchat, TikTok, and FanDuel. Plaintiffs allege that the designs of the platforms are unreasonably dangerous and that the companies failed to warn them about the purported physical and mental health risks, including depression and anxiety. The ubiquitous nature of the conditions alleged and the large number of users of internet-based platforms make it easy to amass thousands of plaintiffs threatening mass litigation. Yet nearly all consumer-facing digital platforms contain Terms of Use including arbitration agreements, which could significantly impact resolution of these claims.
Hollingsworth LLP evaluates the benefits and risks of arbitration as a potential alternative to mass litigation. Considerations highlighted in the article include the costs of arbitration compared to litigation, the public nature of litigation compared to the privacy offered by arbitration, the procedures available to identify representative cases, and the likelihood of success on a motion to compel arbitration, among others. The article also explains the common types of online agreements which may bind users and plaintiffs to agreements to arbitrate, including browsewrap, clickwrap, scrollwrap, and sign-in wrap agreements, and the role key concepts of notice and assent play in any decision to compel arbitration.
The authors conclude that arbitration should be an initial consideration when defending online platforms against products liability claims. In the appropriate circumstance, arbitration may offer a beneficial alternative to traditional litigation. However, the success of moving to compel litigation to arbitration is dependent on the language and design of the platform’s Terms of Use. Companies in this space should consider all relevant factors when deciding how to proceed.