Englander v. CAS Enterprises, Inc.

An agreement was negotiated on February 14, 2013, when citizen enforcer Peter Englander and settling defendant CAS Enterprises, Inc. ("CAS") entered into a Settlement Agreement which resolved Englander's allegations that CAS sold hand tool grips 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, CAS agreed not to sell any hand tool grips in California after October 1, 2013, unless the grips contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. Hand tool grips received in inventory prior to October 1, 2013, may be sold with Proposition 65 warnings provided. Should CAS eliminate the need for Proposition 65 warnings on the grips by October 1, 2013, and continuing into the future, Englander agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $47,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Englander and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.