NEC and preterm infant formula

MDL 3026, N.D. Ill., Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer

Filings

Coordinated

Bellwethers

Settlement

Wind-down

Test trials are set or under way.

Stage: Bellwether trials
Campaign window: Open
Coordination: MDL 3026
Court: N.D. Ill.
Judge: Rebecca R. Pallmeyer
Category: Consumer products
Defendants: Abbott (Similac), Mead Johnson (Enfamil)
Injuries: Necrotizing Enterocolitis — Premature Infants

Updated Sep 30, 2026. Maintained by Jacob Malherbe.

New federal cases per week

2 new cases in the last 7 days. New dockets in N.D. Ill. naming the defendants, from CourtListener's public federal docket index. The outlined bar is the current week so far.

Counts new N.D. Ill. cases naming Mead Johnson, so cases against Abbott alone are undercounted.

Jacob Score: 70

Litigation strength from 0 to 100. Last reviewed Jul 20, 2026. How it's set

Science
Momentum
Campaign
Timeline
Verdicts

What changed

Sep 30, 2026
New study
Improved outcomes and reduced costs: Exclusive human milk diet for very low birth weight infants at a single center
Nutrition and health. Mudekunye G et al.
PubMed (Nutr Health)
Sep 4, 2026
New study
Clinical outcomes and longitudinal growth trajectories in preterm infants fed donor human milk versus formula: A retrospective cohort study
Medicine. Youn SE et al.
PubMed (Medicine (Baltimore))
Aug 31, 2026
New study
Postprandial decline in abdominal regional oxygen saturation is associated with feeding intolerance in preterm infants: a prospective cohort study
Frontiers in pediatrics. Du B et al.
PubMed (Front Pediatr)
Aug 3, 2026
New study
In-hospital peer-supported human milk bank management model and its association with human milk feeding proportions and clinical outcomes in extremely preterm infants: a recipient-to-voluntary-donor approach
International breastfeeding journal. Song X et al.
PubMed (Int Breastfeed J)

Watch this tort

Get NEC formula developments at the top of the Monday briefing.

Who typically qualifies

Premature infant · NEC diagnosis · Formula administered in NICU

From campaign criteria. Qualification depends on each firm's review.

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