Held et al. v. Carole Fabrics Corporation

The Honorable Roy O. Chernus of the Marin County Superior Court granted the parties’ motion to approve the Consent Judgment in the case Held et al. v. Alticor, Inc., et al., on March 7, 2012.  This enforcement action resolved citizen enforcers John Moore and Anthony E. Held, Ph.D., P.E.’s allegations that eighteen defendants sold products containing phthalate chemicals, including the defendant Carole Fabrics Corporation  (“Carole Fabrics”), which allegedly sold vinyl fabric containing the phthalate chemicals di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”), di-n-butyl phthalate (“DBP”) and butyl benzyl phthalate (“BBP”) in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings. 

As part of the settlement, Carole Fabrics agreed not to sell any vinyl fabric in California after December 15, 2011, unless the fabric contains no more than 1,000 parts per million (0.1%) of DEHP, DBP, and BBP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Additionally, Carole Fabrics agreed to provide the reformulation standards to its vendors by January 15, 2012, and instruct them to provide fabric that complies with the reformulation standards expeditiously.  As a de minimus defendant, Carole Fabrics paid a substantially reduced fine.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $28,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblowers Moore and Held and their counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.