Held v. Sky High International, L.L.C.

On May 6, 2011, the San Francisco County Superior Court entered a Consent Judgment in Held v. Sky High International, L.L.C., which resolved citizen enforcer Anthony E. Held, Ph.D., P.E.'s allegations that the defendant Sky High International, L.L.C. ("Sky High") sold vinyl magnets and bookmarks 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, Sky High agreed not to sell any children's magnets or bookmarks in California after January 20, 2011, unless the magnets and bookmarks contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in each accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or have Proposition 65 warnings provided. Due to Sky High's commitment to comply by these heightened standards, Held agreed to credit a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.

The Consent Judgment required settlement payments of $45,000, 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.