When Will Illinoisans Get Money From Facebook Lawsuit Settlement?

It's been quite a while, so it's perfectly understandable that you may have forgotten some of the details about the settlement of a class action lawsuit against Facebook and their parent company Meta.

You may have also forgotten that you qualified for payment under the terms of the settlement of the suit. Here's a quick refresher:

• In 2023, Meta agreed to a $725 million payment to settle a lawsuit claiming Facebook allowed users’ personal data to be shared with third parties.
• Although the application process to be part of the lawsuit has long since come and gone (it closed in August of last year), anyone who was a Facebook user between May 24, 2007, and Dec. 22, 2022, was eligible, according to the lawsuit settlement page.
• Over 28 million people applied, and of that number, 17 million were validated. That means at least 17 million people will get a piece of the settlement money.
• The money will not be divided up equally. Those who have had Facebook accounts longer get more money.
• It's difficult to figure out how much each person will receive in a payout, but the experts are saying the average payout will be about $30.

Now, about when that money will show up...

Finally, After Waiting Almost A Year For News On When The Facebook/Meta Lawsuit Settlement Payouts Will Begin For Illinoisans And Others, We Get Some

Unfortunately, that news is...you'll just have to keep waiting and stay patient. I wish I could give you a whole bunch of specifics on when you can expect your share of the $725 million in payouts, but there really just aren't any.

According to TheHill.com:

Objectors to the settlement have filed two separate appeals to the final settlement, which was approved by a San Francisco judge in October 2023. According to Angeion, the company managing the settlement, it appears the appeals won’t even get a hearing date “until the first half of 2025 or later.”

The piece goes on to point out that setting a date for a hearing is only the first step of several things that have to happen, like the judge deciding if the objections have any merit and if further proceedings need to be scheduled.

Bottom line: No payout date has been set for people in Illinois who've qualified, and the same goes for the rest of the 17 million people who will eventually see some money coming their way...someday. It could take years.