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In 2023, a Florida jury found a manufacturer of ECT machines guilty of failing to inform doctors of the risks.

A 2026 case, suing two psychiatrists for failing to inform two women about risks, was settled out of court.

It is hoped that these cases will ensure that patients and families are informed about the risks of ECT.

A historic electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) legal case in the Superior Court for the State of California in the County of Sacramento was settled out of court shortly before the scheduled trial date of May 11, 2026. I was an expert witness, drawing on my research and reviews about ECT.

(Reporting has only just become possible now that the settlement has been completed.)

Significance of the Case and Previous Legal Precedents

The case is historic as it is the first time individual psychiatrists and a hospital have successfully been sued for damage caused by ECT in California, or for failure to inform about the risks involved. A South Carolina woman previously won a jury verdict of more than $600,000 in 2005 against a doctor after suffering devastating memory loss following ECT (Salters vs. Palmetto Health Alliance, Inc., et al., Case 03CP4004797, Richland County, South Carolina).

Litigation involving ECT has been ongoing in the United States for several years, but the litigation has largely focused on the manufacturers of ECT machines, with plaintiffs claiming the companies failed to warn doctors of ECT’s risks, and, in turn, the doctors could not or were not obligated to warn patients. The litigation in California was particularly challenging because, for decades, a legal loophole allowed ECT machine manufacturers and drug........

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