The Age Appropriate Design Code: Compliance After the Ninth Circuit

The California Age Appropriate Design Code Act did not emerge from a vacuum. Modeled on the UK's Age Appropriate Design Code, the CAADCA reflects a foundational shift in children's online privacy law: placing the burden of harm prevention on platforms rather than parents. Nichole Rocha, Rocha Public Affairs and former Chief Consultant to the California Assembly Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee, draws on her direct role in the California legislative process to walk through the design philosophy behind the law and what it means in practice. The program traces the CAADCA's core requirements, including age estimation, default privacy settings, and the ban on dark patterns, through the litigation that has shaped enforcement, including the Ninth Circuit's split ruling in NetChoice v. Bonta and the provisions now active and enforceable as of March 2026. The CAADCA defines a child as any consumer under 18, a meaningful departure from COPPA's under-13 threshold with significant compliance implications. Attendees will leave with a clear picture of what the law requires today, what remains enjoined, and how to counsel clients operating in this evolving landscape.