Last updated Oct. 13, 2026
Ken Paxton FilesTexas’s attorney general, on the record
Claim check

Paxton says his lawsuits protect kids online. Several were filed days before his runoff, and courts blocked most of the law he enforces.

Our ratingMisleading

Several suits were timed before his May 2026 runoff and most are unresolved; courts blocked most challenged parts of the SCOPE Act, and his biggest tech settlements went to the treasury.

ChildrenConsumersPrivacyCourts
Published Sept. 24, 20266 sources
The claim

Paxton claims his lawsuits against large tech companies protect kids from harmful, addictive material.

Source: Senate runoff victory speech, May 26, 2026 · The Texas Tribune

What the record shows

Several of Paxton’s tech lawsuits were filed in the days before his May 2026 runoff, and most have not reached a judgment. 03 01 Federal courts blocked most of the challenged provisions of the SCOPE Act, the state kids’ online-safety law his office enforces. 06

Money from his largest tech settlements, $1.4 billion from Meta and $1.375 billion from Google, goes to the state treasury as general revenue; neither was a child-safety case. 01 In the toothpaste case, the office’s own release noted Colgate’s label instructions already met FDA requirements. 05

The record behind this

  • Feb. 7, 2025
    Court blocks most of the kids’ online-safety law Paxton enforces

    The injunction covered the law’s targeted-advertising, content-monitoring and age-verification provisions.

    KERA News06
  • Aug. 13, 2025
    Paxton’s Kellogg’s ‘win’ carries no penalty and a 2027 deadline

    The office’s own release does not mention a monetary penalty.

    Office of the Texas Attorney General04
  • Sept. 15, 2025
    Paxton’s Colgate ‘win’: the label instructions already met FDA requirements

    The office’s release notes that Colgate’s written label instructions already met FDA requirements.

    Office of the Texas Attorney General05
  • May 22, 2026
    Paxton files Discord suit four days before his runoff

    The Texas Tribune reported it was one of several tech suits filed before the May 26 runoff. Discord said the suit “does not reflect the platform we have built.”

    Office of the Texas Attorney General02 · The Texas Tribune03
No public response found

No further public response found

We found no public response from Paxton or his campaign on the SCOPE Act rulings or on the timing of the pre-runoff suits.

Last checked — Sept. 24, 2026

Sources

  1. 01Reporting
  2. 02
    Attorney General Ken Paxton files lawsuit against DiscordOffice of the Texas Attorney General · May 22, 2026
    Official statement
  3. 03Reporting
  4. 04Official statement
  5. 05
    Attorney General Ken Paxton and Colgate-Palmolive toothpaste agreementOffice of the Texas Attorney General · Sept. 15, 2025
    Official statement
  6. 06Reporting