NEC Baby Formula Lawsuit Update | April 2025
Every week, the court handling the NEC baby formula lawsuits adds new families to its docket, and the first federal trial is now on the calendar for May 5, 2025. These cases accuse Abbott’s Similac and Mead Johnson’s Enfamil of raising the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature infants—a life‑threatening intestinal disease. If your child was hurt, the window to act is open, but deadlines move quickly once bellwether verdicts start to land.
April 28, 2025 – Settlement chatter grows louder
With jury selection for Mar v. Abbott only a week away, plaintiffs’ lawyers told the court they are fielding more frequent calls from defense counsel about global resolution frameworks. The public docket still lists about 360 live federal actions, a subset of the 683 that have ever been opened – after dismissals for venue mistakes and infant mortality settlements.
State courts carry another 600–700 suits, giving an overall caseload just shy of a thousand. Mass‑tort veterans note that negotiating payouts for 1,000 injured families is administratively realistic. Contrast that with the 3M earplug MDL, which ballooned past 300,000 claims and stalled. Plaintiffs argue that the modest headcount plus two monster verdicts ($60 million in 2024 and $495 million later that year) leave Abbott and Mead Johnson little room to gamble.
Wall Street seems to agree: analysts at two brokerages issue hold ratings, warning that an adverse May verdict could add billions to reserve requirements. Both companies keep quiet about mediation but file an unopposed motion to seal settlement‑finance discussions, which is a classic pre‑deal housekeeping.
April 1, 2025 – JPML confirms rising tide
A fresh statistics sheet from the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation lists 683 pending NEC cases in MDL 3026, up fifty‑one since January. Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer calls the bump the calm before the storm. She predicts another filing rush once jurors return a verdict, explaining that trial results always clarify risk for the fence‑sitters. The report also shows that this MDL ranks in the bottom third based on size proof. The court says that discovery can finish promptly if counsel stays focused. Plaintiffs seize on that language to push against any further trial delays.
March 25, 2025 – A New Oklahoma family joins the fight
Lexington parents filed a direct‑file complaint in the Northern District of Illinois, alleging their son, B.H., required bowel resection surgery after Enfamil feedings in the NICU. The suit repeats a now‑standard theme: Mead Johnson knew since the 1990s that cow‑milk formula could double NEC risk but still marketed the product as essential for growth. By using the MDL’s short‑form template, the family bypasses home‑state filing fees and puts their case on the same track as the bellwethers. The plaintiff’s counsel highlights the filing on social media to remind other parents that it is not too late to step forward, even if the injury happened years ago and medical records are buried in storage.
March 15, 2025 – Defense verdict wiped off the books
St. Louis Circuit Judge Noble issues a blistering 42‑page order vacating the only defense win Abbott and Mead Johnson ever earned. She finds that the counsel acted in bad faith, sneaking in excluded FDA statements and suggesting that the plaintiff wanted formula banned from hospitals. The judge also faults the defense for implying marijuana use, not formula, caused the infant’s NEC without scientific backing. Within hours, the news hits trading screens. Abbott’s stock slips 2.4 % in New York, and Reckitt (Mead Johnson’s parent) drops about 2 % in London. Plaintiffs hail the ruling as proof that juries have yet to side with the manufacturers when trials are run cleanly.
March 3, 2025 – A record month for new filings
Court clerks recorded 63 fresh cases in February, the heaviest monthly influx since MDL 3026 began. That pushes the running total to 663. Commentators link the surge to the back‑to‑back state‑court wins in 2024. The plaintiffs’ steering committee warns the defense that each new docket number raises the settlement curve. Defendants counter that some filings are copy‑and‑paste and will not survive close vetting, but they concede the optics are bad heading into May.
February 11, 2025 – Sweeping bid for summary judgment
Hoping to derail all federal claims, Abbott and Mead Johnson moved to toss the MDL on the grounds that no admissible expert ties the formula to NEC. They lean on a joint FDA‑CDC‑NIH statement that says evidence is inconclusive. Plaintiffs answer that two juries have already ruled the other way and point to peer‑reviewed studies showing the formula can raise NEC odds six‑fold. Judge Pallmeyer withholds judgment, noting the motion overlaps with pending expert‑exclusion briefs.
January 26, 2025 – Neonatologist under fire
The defense files a Daubert motion to exclude Dr. Jennifer Sucre, a Vanderbilt clinician‑scientist whose lab studies neonatal gut injury. They claim her expertise in lung development limits her opinions on intestines. The plaintiffs responded that Dr. Sucre treats NEC every week in the NICU and has published information on the disease’s cellular pathways. Because Dr. Sucre is designated for the May bellwether, Judge Pallmeyer says she will rule well before voir dire.
January 24, 2025 – Page‑limit truce keeps schedule intact
Aware that overlapping expert and summary‑judgment motions could swamp chambers, both sides submit a joint status report, capping briefs at 35 pages and setting staggered deadlines. The agreement preserves the May 5 trial date, which is an important leverage for plaintiffs, who fear delay tactics.
January 8, 2025 – Bellwether calendar goes public
The court names four test cases:
- Mar (May 5, 2025)
- K.B. (August 11, 2025)
- Brown (November 3, 2025)
- Inman (February 2, 2026)
Each involves different product lines and medical fact patterns, giving both sides a broad risk sample. Plaintiff leaders predict a plaintiff win in even one of the first two trials could set the tone for a settlement grid. The companies say they are prepared to defend every case.
December 13, 2024 – JPML keeps a California case in the MDL
A California family tried to steer its NEC claim back to state court, arguing the federal judge lacked jurisdiction. In a nine‑page order, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation said no. The panel found the complaint shares common questions of fact with other NEC lawsuits and that transfer would promote the just and efficient conduct of the litigation. It also reminded the parents that the transferee court can decide jurisdictional fights after the transfer. The ruling widens the reach of MDL 3026 and confirms that one federal judge will keep control of pre‑trial discovery, expert challenges, and scheduling.
November 1, 2024 – First defense win, swift appeal promised
After three weeks of testimony in St. Louis Circuit Court, jurors cleared Abbott and Mead Johnson of liability for a child’s NEC injuries. Defense lawyers called the verdict proof that science is on our side. Plaintiffs saw things differently: they filed a notice of appeal the same afternoon, accusing the defense of slipping barred FDA statements and unverified genetic theories into the record. The verdict did little to calm investors; analysts said one defense win does not erase the earlier $60 million and $495 million hits.
October 31, 2024 – Lead counsel for Abbott sanctioned
One day before closing arguments in the same Missouri trial, Judge Michael Noble barred Kirkland & Ellis partner James Hurst from addressing the jury. The judge listed multiple bad‑faith violations, including repeated references to excluded evidence and efforts to provoke a mistrial. Legal commentators called the sanction extraordinary for a products case, noting it handed the plaintiffs a strong argument on appeal – an argument that would succeed four months later when the verdict was wiped out.
August 25, 2024 – Order of first four bellwethers set
With discovery nearly complete, both sides filed a joint stipulation listing Mar, Diggs, Etienne & Brown, and Inman as the opening test trials. The schedule lets the court sample different fact patterns: two wrongful death cases, one long‑term disability claim, and one involving mixed Similac‑Enfamil feedings. Lawyers say fixing the order helps them focus on expert depositions and budget trial costs. The court agreed to cancel dueling status briefs that had been due the same week.
July 26, 2024 – $495 million verdict rocks Abbott
A St. Louis jury found that Similac Special Care 24 caused an Illinois girl’s NEC and that Abbott hid the danger from doctors. The award—$95 million for medical care and suffering, plus $400 million in punitive damages—cut roughly $8 billion from Abbott’s market value in after‑hours trading as investors recalculated litigation risk. Company spokespeople vowed to appeal but conceded the verdict raises new questions for the market.
July 11, 2024 – First Missouri trial opens
Opening statements in Gill v. Abbott framed the core dispute for jurors: plaintiffs said decades of research showed cow‑milk formula doubles NEC risk. Abbott called the link unproven and blamed the child’s injuries on unrelated birth trauma. Reporters noted the packed gallery and presence of financial analysts, which signaled Wall Street understood the stakes.
June 30, 2024 – New case highlights tolling rules
Parents of a child who developed NEC in 2002 filed directly into the MDL, arguing that state statutes of limitation paused during infancy and that they had no reason to suspect formula until recent publicity. Two days of debate at the next status conference ended with the judge leaving look‑back cases in place for now, ordering defendants to raise tolling defenses in motions rather than blanket objections.
May 30, 2024 – Complaint based on a 2004 injury surfaces
A similar look‑back suit involving a 2004 diagnosis hit the docket. Plaintiffs used the short‑form complaint, attaching NICU feeding logs that still listed Similac lot numbers – evidence the court called remarkably preserved. Defense counsel warned that searching for two‑decade‑old records would slow progress; the judge replied that preservation letters should go out today, not tomorrow.
April 5, 2024 – Mead Johnson swaps in a new trial team
Less than three weeks after losing the $60 million Illinois verdict, Mead Johnson filed a stack of appearances from national products‑liability specialists. Industry watchers read the move as a signal that Reckitt Benckiser, Mead’s parent company, would fund a more aggressive defense. Plaintiffs called it window dressing, noting that facts, not faces, decide cases.
March 18, 2024 – Illinois jury returns $60 million for NEC death
In the first NEC formula case ever tried, jurors in St. Clair County awarded Jasmine Watson $60 million after deciding Enfamil Premature 24 lacked an adequate warning. The number was $25 million higher than the amount her lawyers requested, suggesting the evidence struck a chord. Market reaction was swift: Reckitt shares slid 15 % over the following week.
November 1, 2023 – Four bellwether cases selected
Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer whittled the twelve‑case discovery pool down to Mar, Diggs, Brown, and Inman. Each involves different batches, hospitals, and medical outcomes, giving juries a varied picture of alleged wrongdoing. Parties were told to be trial‑ready by early 2025, a deadline that sharpened deposition schedules.
October 2023 – Internal risk emails unsealed
A tranche of Abbott and Mead Johnson emails dated 2015 surfaced under a protective‑order challenge. One Abbott safety manager wrote, “We can’t keep pretending NEC is unrelated to formula.” The plaintiffs called the language a corporate smoking gun. Defendants said the comment was taken out of context but did not contest authenticity.
June 2022 – Short‑form complaint adopted
To speed filings, the court approved a checklist‑style pleading. Parents could now join the MDL by confirming product use, injury, and date—no need for a full narrative. The form cut filing time from weeks to hours and led to a summer spike in new cases.
April 8, 2022 – MDL 3026 created
The JPML centralized all NEC formula lawsuits in the Northern District of Illinois, citing overlapping discovery and the need to avoid duplicate expert battles. Chief Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer was tapped because she already presided over a related Abbott contamination MDL.
November 2021 – Motion to consolidate filed
With fifteen suits pending in seven states, plaintiffs asked the JPML for coordination. They predicted hundreds more filings once parents learned of the alleged NEC link. Abbott and Mead Johnson opposed, claiming each case was too fact‑specific. The panel disagreed four months later.
2019–2020 – First individual cases set the stage
The opening shots came in Illinois, California, Texas, and Ohio. Parents alleged that the companies knew from 1990s research that cow milk formula raises NEC odds sixfold but never warned the NICU staff. The early discovery showed internal PowerPoints referencing that science—documents that would later appear in state‑court trials. Though small in number, these pioneering suits framed the failure‑to‑warn theory that has anchored every claim filed since.
Consult an NEC Baby Formula Lawyer Without Delay
At Foster James Law, we are already working inside MDL 3026, following every entry on the docket the moment it appears. That real‑time awareness lets us pivot quickly when the judge issues a new order on medical causation or discovery. Behind the scenes, our team pulls hospital feeding charts, pathology slides, and formula batch numbers as soon as a family hires us, shaving weeks off the usual wait for critical evidence.
We pair those records with testimony from court‑qualified neonatologists and epidemiologists who can explain in plain language how cow milk formula can lead to necrotizing enterocolitis.
Because each child’s timeline is unique, we look at both state and federal venues, choosing the forum that offers the best leverage for a prompt, fair recovery. And you never have to worry about legal fees derailing treatment costs: we advance every expense and collect nothing unless we win. To find out where your claim stands in the larger strategy, call 855-211-8999 or reach out to us online.
