Held v. D&C International, Inc.

An agreement was entered into between citizen enforcer Anthony E. Held, Ph.D., P.E., and settling party D&C International, Inc. ("D&C") on February 6, 2013. This Settlement Agreement resolved Held's allegations that D&C sold toiletry cases/bags 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, D&C agreed not to sell any toiletry cases/bags in California after February 8, 2013, unless the toiletry cases/bags contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. Should D&C comply with these heightened standards by December 15, 2013, and continuing into the future, Held agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $41,000, 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.