Brimer v. Topco Associates, LLC

On April 13, 2010, the San Francisco County Superior Court entered a Consent Judgment in Brimer v. ACCO Brands Co., Inc., et al., which resolved citizen enforcer Russell Brimer's allegations that the defendant, Topco Associates, LLC ("Topco"), sold colored, vinyl-coated paper fasteners containing the heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Topco agreed not to sell any vinyl-coated paper fasteners in California after October 23, 2009, unless the fasteners contain less than 300 parts per million of lead when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $60,500, 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.