Lawsuit Targeting Somatics Shock Therapy Device Survives Dismissal in Fla.

TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida federal judge has refused to dismiss claims for negligence, breach of warranty and fraudulent misrepresentation in a lawsuit targeting Somatics LLC’s shock therapy device, ruling that the plaintiff has sufficiently alleged proximate causation.

In a Feb. 26 order, Judge Tom Barber of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida further ruled that the plaintiff may pursue his punitive damages claim because it is governed by Florida law.

From 2014 to 2016, Jeffrey Thelen underwent 92 sessions of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) using the Thymatron System IV device. The ECT device was manufactured …