March 15, 2024 — A jury in St. Clair County, Illinois has awarded $60 million to the parents of a premature baby who died after being fed cow’s milk-based Enfamil infant formula in the NICU.
After a month-long trial, the jury spent less than 2 hours deliberating before awarding $60 million to the parents of Chance Dean, a baby who died of Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) after being fed Enfamil.
The $60 million verdict was $25 million more than what the parents had originally asked for.
The verdict was the first trial out of hundreds of similar lawsuits that are currently pending against the manufacturers of infant formula, Abbott Laboratories and Mead Johnson.
All of the lawsuits cite studies dating back to the 1990s showing that infants who are fed cow’s milk-based infant formula are far more likely to develop NEC compared to babies who are fed human breastmilk.
The lawsuits accuse manufacturers of failing to adequately warn parents and hospitals about the risk of NEC. Instead, manufacturers advertised cow’s milk-based infant formulas for premature infants.
Mead Johnson and Abbott are currently facing more than 400 baby formula NEC lawsuits in a Multi-District Litigation (MDL) under U.S. District Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer in the Northern District of Illinois.
Do I have a Baby Formula NEC Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) induced injury cases in all 50 states. If your premature baby was diagnosed with NEC after being fed infant formula in the NICU, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Baby Formula Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
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