An appeals court has ruled that thousands of lawsuits against social media companies can move forward. File Photo by Adam Vaughan/EPAAug. 11 (UPI) -- A federal appeals court ruled Monday that thousands of lawsuits against social media companies, like TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat, can proceed. The decision paves the way for thousands more lawsuits against the companies to move forward. In March, a jury found Meta and YouTube liable for negligently designing addictive social media platforms that harm children. The court also denied Meta's request to delay a trial starting Wednesday for allegations the company collected and used children's data illegally.