Held v. Picnic at Ascot, Inc.

On January 21, 2015, the parties executed an out-of-court Settlement Agreement, which resolved the allegations that whistleblower Anthony E. Held, Ph.D, P.E., made against settling party Picnic at Ascot, Inc. (“Picnic at Ascot”).  In this matter, Held alleged that Picnic at Ascot sold backpacks with vinyl/PVC handles 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, Picnic at Ascot agreed not to sell any backpacks with vinyl/PVC handles in California after January 30, 2015, unless the backpacks contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Should Picnic at Ascot provide written certification by February 1, 2015, that all backpacks with vinyl/PVC handles qualify as reformulated, Held agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied. 

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $29,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Held and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.