Utah defends social media child protection laws against Snapchat suit

Utah and Snapchat have taken each other on multiple spins around state, federal and appeals courts since the laws were initially enacted in 2023. (CN) — The state of Utah asked a federal court judge on Thursday to dismiss a Snap Inc. lawsuit seeking to prevent the state from enforcing new laws aimed at protecting children from social media companies. Utah Attorney General Derek Brown and Katie Haas, director of the Utah Department of Commerce Consumer Protection Division, accused Snapchat and its owner Snap Inc. of filing a new lawsuit in federal court to avoid the state’s enforcement of new social media laws while there is still pending civil enforcement in different courts. They asked the federal court to abstain from hearing any of Snapchat’s challenges to the Utah social media laws while those cases are ongoing. “There is one side in this case that is trying to avoid the effect of court decisions,” argued attorney Jimmy Rock, of D.C.-based law firm Edelson PC, representing the state of Utah. “It is not the state. It is Snap.” Snapchat’s attorney, Rush Atkinson of D.C. law firm Dunn Isaacson Rhee, argued that the matter had already been decided in federal court in the
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