Held v. Cosstar, Inc.

On March 19, 2009, the Sacramento County Superior Court entered a Consent Judgment in Held v. Cosstar, Inc., which resolved citizen enforcer Anthony E. Held, Ph.D., P.E.'s allegations that the defendant Cosstar, Inc. ("Cosstar") sold sporting toys and children's items 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, Cosstar agreed not to sell any sporting toys and children's items in California after December 3, 2008, unless the toys and children's items are sold or shipped with Proposition 65 warnings or contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. The settlement sum does not include additional fees incurred seeking judicial approval of the Consent Judgment.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $18,000, 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.