On April 9–10, 2026, a Cook County jury delivered one of the most significant product liability verdicts in infant formula litigation history — a $70 million judgment against Abbott Laboratories over its Similac Special Care formula and its link to necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature infants. For families navigating this legal landscape, understanding how that $70 million was calculated — and how damages might apply to your own case — is critical. This guide breaks down the verdict, explains the infant formula NEC verdict Abbott damage calculator methodology used in product liability cases, and provides a framework for estimating compensation in similar NEC lawsuits.
The April 2026 Cook County Verdict: What Happened
A Cook County jury returned a $70 million verdict against Abbott Laboratories in April 2026, finding the company responsible for NEC injuries suffered by premature infants who were fed Similac Special Care formula. The verdict included $53 million in compensatory damages and $17 million in punitive damages after jurors found that Abbott’s cow’s milk-based formula contributed to the infants developing NEC. The split between these two damage categories reveals exactly how juries weigh ongoing harm against corporate wrongdoing in product liability cases. The Cook County verdict was one of several major legal developments in 2026: the Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed a separate $495 million verdict against Abbott in May 2026, Abbott reached a $670 million settlement covering approximately 2,000 NEC infant claims in August 2026, and total verdicts paid out to plaintiffs across all NEC formula litigation have now surpassed $555 million.
After ten hours of deliberation, an Illinois jury awarded $53 million in compensatory damages to four mothers whose preterm infants had been diagnosed with NEC — a severe gastrointestinal illness — after being fed Abbott’s cow’s milk-based Similac Special Care 24 baby formula at hospitals in the Chicago area. The plaintiffs alleged that Abbott had concealed evidence from regulators and the public that the formula could cause NEC, resulting in long-term damage to the babies, including surgery in the initial weeks after they were born.
The verdict marks the first NEC baby formula case to go to trial in Illinois and represents a significant development in the ongoing litigation against manufacturers of cow’s milk-based infant formulas. In a statement, Abbott said it “respectfully but strongly” disagreed with the verdict and would appeal. To understand how courts measure compensation under product liability law, it helps to examine each damage category in detail.
How the $53 Million in Compensatory Damages Was Calculated
James Mitchell is a personal injury legal researcher with over a decade of experience analyzing settlement data and compensation trends across the United States. He has studied thousands of personal injury cases to help injury victims understand their legal rights and the potential value of their claims. James is not an attorney and the information he provides is for
educational purposes only.