Englander v. Staedtler-Mars Limited

The parties involved in the case Englander v. Staedtler-Mars Limited executed a Consent Judgment on June 15, 2017.  In this matter, citizen enforcer Peter Englander alleged that Staedtler-Mars Limited (“Staedtler”) sold vinyl/PVC cutting mats containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”) and diisononyl phthalate (“DINP”) in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.  

As part of the agreement, Staedtler agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC cutting mats in California five days after the Marin County Superior Court approves the Judgment, unless the mats contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP and DINP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Staedtler shall supply these reformulation standards to their vendors and instruct them to comply expeditiously.  Products that do not meet the reformulation standards must be accompanied by a Proposition 65 warning.

The Consent Judgment required settlement payments of up to $37,500, 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.