Meta attorney reveals secret social media plaintiff KMG’s name in epic courtroom slip up

It’s a Meta mistake.

The heavily guarded name of the plaintiff suing Meta and YouTube slipped out in court Tuesday thanks to an attorney for one of the social media giants.

Meta Lawyer Paul Schmidt blurted out the last name of the woman who had only been referred to as Kaley or by her initials K.M.G.

The plaintiff’s last name has been carefully protected from the public by the judge because she was a minor when the alleged damage she suffered from Instagram took place.  

Schmidt was questioning Dr. Kara Bagot, an expert witness about potential neglectful parenting Kaley suffered as a kid when the slip up happened, according to Law 360.

“And in fact, in your report, you reported that [K.M.G.] experience of this event, of not speaking to her for several days at a time throughout elementary and middle school, was neglect, that’s what you wrote in your report, yes or no?” Schmidt said.

Bagot noticed the last name right away, Law 360 said and quickly alerted the judge. “So, the name? The name?” Bagot commented.

At that point the judge stopped the proceedings briefly. “The court will strike from the record the inadvertent statement of counsel with respect to the plaintiff’s name, and it is sealed and may not be referred to by anyone in this courtroom, and it may not be used,” he said.

Kaley has rarely been seen in the courtroom, but attended court for testimony from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and testified last week.

She revealed that her addiction to social media began when she was just 6 years old — a habit she said consumed her childhood, derailed friendships and spiraled into depression.

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“I just felt like I wanted to be on it all the time,” the 20-year-old said in the Los Angeles Superior courtroom on Thursday. “If I wasn’t on it, I was going to miss out on something.”

Her testimony was reported by the New York Times and Reuters.

K.M.G.’s lawyers argue that core design features — including autoplay videos and an infinite scrolling feed — were intentionally built to maximize engagement, even as concerns mounted about the mental health impact on young users.

Since the trial began it’s been revealed that Kaley is from Chico, California and she works at Walmart. The college she attends was also mentioned according to Law 360.

Meta has denied the allegations that the social media platforms were designed to be addictive.