Held v. Sara Max Apparel Group, Inc., et al.

On September 17, 2008, the Alameda County Superior Court entered a Consent Judgment in Held v. Sara Max Apparel Group, Inc., which resolved citizen enforcer Anthony E. Held, Ph.D., P.E.'s allegations that the defendant Sara Max Apparel Group, Inc. ("Sara Max") sold certain child care articles containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate ("DEHP") and heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, Sara Max agreed not to sell any baby bibs in California after May 30, 2008, unless the baby bibs have Proposition 65 warnings provided or contain less than 200 parts per million of lead and less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies. All baby bibs sold in California by Sara Max after September 30, 2008, shall qualify as reformulated. The settlement sum does not include additional fees incurred seeking judicial approval of the Consent Judgment.

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $50,750, 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.