Mark Zuckerberg and several current and former Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) directors have agreed to pay $190 million to settle a shareholder lawsuit alleging they failed to protect Facebook users' privacy.
The amount of the settlement, disclosed in a filing Thursday in Delaware Chancery Court, had been sealed since a trial was halted in July.
As part of the deal, the company's board has agreed to strengthen policies on director conduct, insider trading, and whistleblower protections.
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Derivative Case Claims
The derivative lawsuit claimed leadership allowed widespread data misuse that led to billions in fines, including the $5 billion penalty tied to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Initially, shareholders demanded $8 billion, claiming that Meta executives disregarded their oversight responsibilities while improperly accessing user data without authorization.
This is the second-largest Delaware derivative settlement involving oversight failures, and it will be paid out from directors' and officers' insurance.
The lawyers for the plaintiffs will demand fees of up to 30% of the award.
Trial Averted
A high-profile trial that was scheduled to include testimony from Zuckerberg, Marc Andreessen, Sheryl Sandberg, Peter Thiel, and others has been put on hold by the settlement.
Benzinga's Edge Stock Rankings highlight that META has a Quality score of 91.19. Track the performance of other players in this segment.
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