Nairobi Court Rules Facebook Parent Company Meta Can Be Sued in Kenya

The High Court in Kenya has rejected Facebook parent company Meta’s bid to stop a suit accusing it of exploitation and poor working conditions.

A former content moderator at Sama, a company contracted by Meta to review Facebook posts, sued the company claiming that workers in Kenya were subjected to forced labor and irregular pay and denied the right to unionize.

Meta wanted the suit struck down, arguing that Kenya’s employment and labor relations court had no jurisdiction over the company because it is neither based in nor trades in the country.

On Monday, High Court judge Jacob Gakeri dismissed the application, ruling that Meta Platforms Inc and Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd, who are listed as second and third respondents respectively, “shall not be struck from the proceeding.”

The judge stated that the two companies were “proper parties” in the case, with the court setting March 8th as the date to discuss how it will proceed to a hearing.

Meta is facing a separate lawsuit in Kenya filed by two individuals and a rights group accusing the American tech giant of responding inadequately to hateful content on its platform, especially in relation to the war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region.

The petitioners are seeking the establishment of a Sh200 billion ($1.6-billion) compensation fund for victims of hate and violence incited on Facebook.