Englander v. Satco Products, Inc.

Whistleblower Peter Englander and settling party Satco Products, Inc. (“Satco”) entered into an out-of-court Settlement Agreement on September 3, 2013, which resolved Englander’s allegations that Satco sold vinyl/PVC 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, Satco agreed not to sell any hand tool grips in California after August 31, 2013, unless the tools contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or have Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Should Satco provide written certification that by January 31, 2014, and continuing into the future, all tools sold in California qualify as reformulated, Englander agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied. 

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $35,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Englander and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.