Brimer v. Super Micro Computer, Inc., et al.

In Brimer v. Super Micro Computer, Inc., et al., the Honorable Cecilia P. Castellanos entered a Consent Judgment on November 20, 2007, resolving citizen enforcer Russell Brimer's allegations that the defendant, Super Micro Computer, Inc. ("Super Micro"), sold motherboards with solder containing the heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Super Micro agreed not to sell any motherboards in California after June 30, 2007, unless the motherboards have Proposition 65 warnings provided or contain no more than .1 percent of lead by weight in each solder material, unless the material is embedded in a manner that a consumer or worker would not ordinarily come into contact with the lead during reasonably foreseeable use. Additionally, in a good-faith effort to inform the public about the risk of lead exposure from unreformulated motherboards, Super Micro agreed to post a Proposition 65 warning on its website for three years. Due to Super Micro's prompt cooperation during the settlement process and commitment to reformulation, Brimer agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine. Should Super Micro satisfy the voluntary penalty reductions outlined in the Consent Judgment, Brimer agreed to waive an additional portion of the penalty.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $80,500, to be 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.