Brimer v. Dixon Ticonderoga Company

On August 20, 2012, citizen enforcer Russell Brimer and settling defendant Dixon Ticonderoga Company ("Dixon") entered into an out-of-court Settlement Agreement, which resolved Brimer's allegations that Dixon sold pen pouches containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate ("DEHP") in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Dixon agreed not to sell any pen pouches in California after June 30, 2012, unless the pen pouches contained no more than 0.1 percent (1,000 parts per million) of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. Due to Dixon's commitment to comply with these heightened standards, Brimer agreed to waive a portion of the civil penalties that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $21,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Brimer and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.