Leeman v. Barnes & Noble, Inc.

On April 14, 2016, citizen enforcer Whitney R. Leeman, Ph.D. and settling party Barnes & Noble, Inc. (“Barnes & Noble”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Leeman had alleged that Barnes & Noble sold vinyl/PVC art case 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, Barnes & Noble agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC art case handles in California after April 14, 2016, unless the handles 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.  Should Barnes & Noble provide Leeman with written certification by October 15, 2016 that all vinyl/PVC art case handles sold in California qualify as reformulated products under the agreement, Leeman agreed to waive a portion of the civil penalty that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $33,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Leeman and her counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.