United States of America: Court granted preliminary injunction against California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (NetChoice v Bonta)

On 13 March 2025, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California granted a preliminary injunction against the enforcement of the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act (CAADCA). NetChoice, a trade association representing internet companies such as Google and Meta, initiated legal proceedings challenging CAADCA. The association argued that the provisions of the Act, including age verification requirements, policy enforcement mandates, and content restrictions, violated First Amendment rights and imposed unconstitutional content-based regulations on digital platforms. In a previous ruling, the Court determined that NetChoice was likely to succeed in its facial First Amendment challenge. However, following an appeal, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals set aside certain aspects of the injunction while upholding the ruling on Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA) and related provisions. Subsequent to the remand, NetChoice filed an amended complaint and a second motion for a preliminary injunction, which the Court granted, determining a likelihood of success on both First Amendment and vagueness claims. The Court ruled that several provisions of CAADCA, including policy enforcement, information use restrictions, dark patterns prohibitions, and age estimation requirements, were likely unconstitutional. The injunction immediately blocks enforcement of CAADCA and remains in effect until further court orders, with no requirement for a security bond.