The National Law Journal recently interviewed Partner Carol C. Villegas in the article, “One Year Later, Labaton Partner Assesses Legacy of Landmark Meta Privacy Verdict,” reflecting on the lasting impact of the historic, unanimous jury verdict against Meta Platforms one year after the landmark decision.

As co-lead trial counsel, Carol discussed how the case, which held Meta liable under the California Invasion of Privacy Act for its role in the unauthorized collection and use of highly sensitive reproductive health data from the Flo Health app, has become a bellwether for privacy litigation.  She reflects on the verdict's influence on consumer privacy, evolving corporate practices around sensitive health data, and the future of privacy litigation, including artificial intelligence and children's privacy.

“Digital reproductive information does have strong privacy protection, and I think that the jury was able to look at all these very complicated issues and come to a very firm conclusion, holding Meta accountable for intercepting these very private communications,” Carol said.  “In the wake of it, you are seeing that a lot of companies, and even Meta, are really changing their practices.”

The verdict marked a pivotal moment for women's privacy protection and consumer data privacy, with lasting implications for consumer protection, corporate accountability, and the evolving legal landscape surrounding sensitive personal information.

Reflecting on the public response to the verdict, Carol noted: “Most people, when I tell the story, they say, ‘Never in my life would I think that by using a reproductive health app . . .  Meta is somehow getting my information and using it.’  For a lot of people, it opened their eyes that they just need to be more proactive and pay more attention when they're using apps that are specific to their health.  And I think that's a victory.”

“I think that there's going to be heightened scrutiny on any kind of app or device that involves this type of data and, I think, companies and GCs who work for companies that either house this data or collect this data should really pay attention to what happened in the Flo Health/Meta trial, because what we've learned is that if you do have this type of information ... consumers are going to expect you to protect that information and not share it with others unless they have informed consent,” Carol said, discussing the future of consumer protection and privacy litigation.