Mintz announced that it successfully obtained the dismissal of all claims alleged in a shareholder class action against the former senior executives of DermTech, Inc., a San Diego-based life sciences company focused on medical technology and testing in the dermatological field.

The Plaintiff alleged that DermTech misrepresented the extent to which their flagship product, the DermTech Melanoma Test (DMT), was covered by Medicare, along with other statements concerning DermTech’s financial metrics and a series of new private payor contracts. 

This week, Judge Sabraw, Chief Judge of the Southern District of California, granted a motion to dismiss as to all claims against DermTech’s former CEO John Dobak and CFO Kevin Sun on the grounds that the allegations did not show fraudulent intent, or scienter, and that Plaintiffs failed to plead with particularity facts that gave rise to a strong inference that Dobak and Sun (and, by extension, DermTech) acted “either intentionally or with deliberate recklessness.” 

Judge Sabraw additionally adopted Mintz’s arguments with respect to falsity, finding that Plaintiff failed to plead three groups of statements were materially false and misleading. 

Because Judge Sabraw found that the Plaintiff failed to plead scienter with particularity, thus dismissing Plaintiff’s primary Section 10(b) claim, he also dismissed Plaintiff’s secondary Section 20(a) claims against both Dobak and Sun for the same reason. Plaintiff was given until January 16, 2025 to amend his complaint to cure the deficiencies as to both scienter and falsity. 

The Mintz team was led by Member Sean Prosser and included Associates Patrick McDonough, Jennifer Yoonjee Kim, Alain Mathieu, and Gretchen Goyette.

About Mintz

Mintz is a litigation powerhouse and business accelerator serving leaders in life sciences, private equity, energy, and technology. The world’s most innovative companies trust Mintz to provide expert advice, protect and monetize their IP, negotiate deals, source financing, and solve complex legal challenges. The firm has over 600 attorneys across offices in Boston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Washington, DC, San Francisco, San Diego, and Toronto.