Brimer et al. v. D.W.L. International Trading Inc.

Posted: 10/23/2012  browse the case archive

The Honorable Mark H. Pierce of the Santa Clara County Superior Court granted the parties’ motion to approve the Consent Judgment in the case Brimer et al. v. 3M Company, et al., on October 23, 2012.  This enforcement action resolved citizen enforcers Russell Brimer, John Moore, and Peter Englander’s allegations that sixteen defendants, including D.W.L. International Trading Inc. and Winco Industries Co. (collectively “D.W.L.”), sold hand tools, garden tools, and/or kitchen utensils containing the phthalate chemicals di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”), di-n-butyl phthalate (“DBP”), butyl benzyl phthalate (“BBP”), and the heavy metal lead.  Specifically, the citizen enforcers alleged that D.W.L. sold color coded ladles containing DEHP in California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, D.W.L. agreed not to sell any ladles in California after September 15, 2012, unless the ladles contain no more than 1,000 parts per million (0.1%) of DEHP, DBP, and BBP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Additionally, D.W.L. agreed to provide the reformulation standards to its vendors by September 13, 2012, and instruct them to provide ladles that comply with the reformulation standards expeditiously.  Because D.W.L. is a de minimus defendant, the citizen enforcers substantially reduced the civil penalties in light of D.W.L.’s low sales.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $28,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblowers Brimer, Moore, and Englander and their counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.

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