Leeman v. Dee Zee, Inc.

The parties involved in the case Leeman v. Dee Zee, Inc. executed a Consent Judgment on June 29, 2016.  In this matter, citizen enforcer Whitney R. Leeman, Ph.D. alleged that Dee Zee, Inc. (“Dee Zee”) sold vinyl/PVC cables 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 agreement, Dee Zee agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC cables in California after the Alameda County Superior Court approves the Judgment, unless the cables contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Should Dee Zee provide Leeman with certification by September 15, 2016 that all vinyl/PVC cables sold in California qualify as reformulated by the above standards, Leeman has agreed to waive a portion of the civil penalty that would otherwise be applied.

The Consent Judgment required 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 whistleblower Leeman and her counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.