Held v. Bentex Group, Inc,; Four Seasons General Merchandise, Inc.; et al.

On April 10, 2009, the Alameda County Superior Court entered a Consent Judgment in Held v. Toys "R" Us, Inc.; et al., which resolved citizen enforcer Anthony E. Held, Ph.D., P.E.'s allegations that the defendant Four Seasons General Merchandise, Inc. ("Four Seasons") sold vinyl baby bibs 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, Four Seasons agreed not to sell any vinyl baby bibs in California after September 30, 2008, unless the bibs are sold or shipped with Proposition 65 health hazard warnings or contain no less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. Additionally, Four Seasons agreed to recall all units of Spider-Man & Friends Vinyl Bib, #00682RS (#0 79522 29133 3) that contained more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $27,500, to be divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Held and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.