NEC Formula Lawsuit Set To Go Before Jury in Aug. 2025

Following the dismissal of a first bellwether case in May 2025, opening statements will begin on August 8, involving a Maryland child who developed NEC from infant formula.

The first federal NEC lawsuit involving claims that cow’s milk-based infant formula can cause preterm infants to experience potentially deadly side effects will go before a jury in August 2025, as part of a series of early bellwether trials designed to gauge how juries may respond to evidence and testimony that may be repeated throughout hundreds of claims being pursued against the makers of Similac and Enfamil.

Abbott Laboratories and Mead Johnson face more than 700 Similac lawsuits and Enfamil lawsuits, respectively, each involving similar allegations that the companies failed to disclose that their formula products may cause premature babies to develop necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a devastating and often life-threatening gastrointestinal disease.

NEC occurs when harmful bacteria infiltrates the walls of a newborn’s intestines, causing portions of the tissue to become inflamed or die. In many cases, infants who contract NEC require emergency surgery while still in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) after birth. 

Many babies do not survive the disease, and those who do often experience lifelong effects. However, NEC formula lawsuits allege that premature infants may have avoided the condition if the manufacturers of Similac and Enfamil had provided accurate warnings and information for families and the medical community.

Due to common questions of fact and law involved in the claims, all federal NEC formula lawsuits have been consolidated in the Northern District of Illinois, as part of a federal MDL (multidistrict litigation), where US. District Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer has been overseeing coordinated pretrial discovery and preparing a small group of “bellwether” cases for early trial dates.

These bellwether trials are intended to help the parties gauge the strength and weaknesses of arguments, evidence and testimony that will likely be used throughout the litigation. While the outcomes are not binding on other claims, they are expected to play a big role in settlement negotiations that may resolve the litigation.

Judge Pallmeyer initially selected four NEC formula lawsuits for bellwether trials, with the first case set to go before a jury in April 2025. However, that case was dismissed just days before the trial was set to begin, after Judge Pallmeyer determined that the plaintiff lacked sufficient evidence to maintain her claim.

In a docket entry (PDF) issued on June 11, the judge confirmed that the next bellwether trial will get underway in early August 2025, involving claims filed by Keosha Diggs, of Maryland, who indicates her minor child, identified only as “K.B.”, suffered NEC after being fed Similac and Enfamil products, resulting in severe life-long injuries.

The Court is expected to hear oral arguments for summary judgment motions in that case on July 28, 2025. Unless the manufacturers are able to convince the court to dismiss the claim, a panel of jurors will be requested to appear on August 4, 2025, with opening arguments slated to begin on August 8, 2025.

A second bellwether trial is already planned, involving claims brought by Alexis Inman, whose child died after being fed Mead Johnson’s Enfamil products shortly after birth. No trial date has yet been set, but dispositive motions have been given an August 25 deadline, with responses due by September 22, and replies due by October 6, 2025.

The bellwether cases will be closely watched, since the average payouts awarded by juries in these early trials will likely have a substantial impact on the amount that Abbott and Mead Johnson may be required to pay in NEC formula lawsuits settlements, to avoid hundreds of additional claims going before juries.

Judge Pallmeyer has also directed the parties to meet and confer on a process to select additional bellwether cases after Inman, as well as a proposal for how the court should handle pretrial motions in other, non-bellwether cases.

If the parties fail to resolve the litigation following the federal bellwether trials, Judge Pallmeyer may start remanding dozens of individual claims back to U.S. District Courts nationwide for separate trial dates.

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