Held et al. v. Zone Enterprises of Anaheim, LLC

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 Zone Enterprises of Anaheim, LLC and its releases The Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S., Inc., ESPN, Inc., Disney Shopping, Inc., and Disney Destinations LLC dba Disney Theme Park Merchandise (collectively “Zone”), which allegedly sold keychains 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, Zone agreed not to sell any keychains in California after December 15, 2011, unless the keychains contain 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, Zone agreed to provide the reformulation standards to its vendors by January 15, 2012, and instruct them to provide keychains that comply with the reformulation standards expeditiously.  As a de minimus defendant, Zone paid a substantially reduced fine.  However, because Zone was the subject of an existing complaint regarding violations of Proposition 65, it was responsible for paying an additional charge.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $38,000, 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.