The social network filed Wednesday for a $5 billion stock offering that could create one of America's largest publicly traded companies.
But even as Facebook reinvents the way people around the world communicate, it anticipates a mountain of legal challenges which will take armies of lawyers years to disentangle.
In its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Facebook hinted at some of the legal tangles ahead, writing that it is already embroiled in litigation and anticipates "numerous" more lawsuits in coming years.
"We are currently, and expect to be in the future, party to patent lawsuits and other intellectual property rights claims that are expensive and time-consuming, and, if resolved adversely, could have a significant impact on our business, financial condition, or results of operations," Facebook said.
Legal experts said there is virtually no corner of public life where Facebook's impact is not felt.
"Social media drastically affects almost every aspect of how society communicates," said Brian Wassom, a partner at Honigman Miller Schwarz and Cohn law firm in Detroit.
Wassom said the numerous types of possible legal challenges reflect the unprecedented reach that Facebook has achieved in its few years of existence.
The company says it has over 845 million users including nearly half a billion who log in daily. (AFP)
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