In a huge and somewhat unexpected win for plaintiffs, a St. Louis judge has erased the only trial win for formula manufacturers among hundreds of pending baby formula NEC lawsuits.
Judge Michael Noble, who oversaw the October trial that listed the makers of Similac and Enfamil as defendants, has ordered a retrial.
According to Reuters, Judge Noble said that he based his decision on misconduct committed by the defense’s representatives that could have resulted in an unfair verdict.
The trial, which was held in St. Louis state court, centered on claims made by plaintiff Elizabeth Whitfield. She stated that Abbott Laboratories and Mead Johnson failed to warn of the possible risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) when some of their formulas are fed to premature infants.
NEC is a serious and possibly fatal gastrointestinal issue where bacteria can leak out of the intestine and cause deadly infections. Whitfield’s son, Kaine, was fed formula after he was born prematurely and went on to develop NEC. The infant survived but was left with permanent health issues.
The defendants’ win in that case marked a notable departure from previous results in similar trials, where plaintiffs had been awarded multimillion-dollar verdicts. But now, that win may not stand.
Abbott and Mead Johnson plan to appeal Judge Noble’s decision.
“In October 2024, the jury unanimously found, consistent with the scientific consensus, that Mead Johnson was not liable,” Mead Johnson said in a statement. “Nothing the court has now cited justifies disregarding the jury’s determination.”
Judge Highlights Defense’s ‘Misconduct’ in Decision to Retry Baby Formula Lawsuit
In his decision to order a retrial, Judge Noble cited numerous incidents of misconduct by the defense team. According to the Chicago Tribune, this included the repeated introduction of inadmissible evidence.
The trial had included some contentious moments involving the defense’s representatives. Bloomberg reported at the time that Judge Noble sanctioned a defense lawyer and barred him from making any further arguments during the trial.
The judge believed the lawyer intentionally attempted to force a mistrial by introducing evidence meant to prejudice the jury.
Judge Noble’s order for a retrial comes during a key time for the baby formula litigation. The first of the federal bellwether trials is set to get underway in May. These trials serve as test cases, and their outcomes help to inform both sides of which way the litigation is trending.
Abbott and Mead Johnson’s October trial win had been a major boon for the defendants following losses in both of the previous baby formula cases to go to trial in state court.
In March 2024, an Illinois jury awarded $60 million to the mother of a premature infant who developed NEC and died after being fed one of Mead Johnson’s formulas. A few months later, in July, a St. Louis jury handed down a stunning $495 million verdict to the mother of an infant that developed NEC after being fed an Abbott formula.
Abbott and Mead Johnson will now head into the key bellwether cases without any wins in the litigation.
The first bellwether trial will begin on May 5. Additional trials are set for August, November and February.
Baby Formula Lawsuits Claim Formula Led to Serious Health Concerns
As of this month, there are more than 600 lawsuits pending in federal court claiming that baby formula manufacturers failed to warn of the possible risk of NEC from their products. Hundreds of additional cases are pending in state court as well.
Research has long suggested that a link may exist between formula feeding and the development of NEC in premature infants. One 2017 study on NEC noted that formula feeding “significantly increases the risk of NEC.”
According to Cleveland Clinic, NEC kills some of the intestinal tissue in infants, typically those who were born prematurely. When this happens, bacteria can spread from a hole in the intestines into other parts of the infant’s body, leading to the potential for serious infections.
The mortality rate for NEC ranges from 10% to as high as 50%.