A judge blocks California's online child safety law again.
NetChoice achieved another victory in the legal arena.
A federal judge has once again halted the implementation of a significant online child safety law in California. In a recent ruling, U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman granted a preliminary injunction in favor of NetChoice, arguing that the tech trade group's claims regarding a violation of the First Amendment have a chance of success.
This law, known as the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (CAADCA), was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2022 and applies to online platforms that could be used by minors. In addition to limiting the use of dark patterns, the legislation would require these platforms to estimate users' ages and set specific privacy options for children. NetChoice argued that the requirements are too vague, as they necessitate "subjective" decisions about content, which could negatively impact free speech.
Judge Labson Freeman had previously blocked the CAADCA in 2023, and that decision was partially upheld by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last year. The case was subsequently returned to the judge to decide on the remaining parts of the law. NetChoice claimed that this ruling will prevent the enforcement of the entire CAADCA.
"Even if the Court accepts that the Law promotes a compelling state interest in protecting the privacy and welfare of children, the State has not demonstrated that the CAADCA is specifically designed to serve that interest," Judge Labson Freeman noted in her ruling. "The Law applies to all online content that is likely to be accessed by consumers under 18 years old and imposes significant burdens on providers of that content."
NetChoice represents companies like Meta, Netflix, X, and Amazon, and has successfully challenged various child safety laws in different states across the U.S. Recently, they filed a lawsuit to obstruct Maryland’s Kids Code law, which aims to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content online.
"While protecting children online is a shared goal, the California Freedom of Expression Code is a Trojan horse for censoring constitutionally protected but politically disfavored speech," stated Chris Marchese, litigation director at NetChoice, in a statement. "This ruling warns other states that censorship regimes disguised as ‘privacy protections’ will not survive judicial scrutiny."
