Leeman v. Home Products International, Inc., et al.

On March 2, 2016, citizen enforcer Whitney R. Leeman, Ph.D. and settling party Home Products International, Inc. and Home Products International – North America, Inc. (collectively, “Home Products”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Leeman had alleged that Home Products sold vinyl/PVC hoses 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, Home Products agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC hoses in California after February 19, 2016, unless the hoses contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP by weight when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  Should Home Products provide Leeman with written certification by April 15, 2016 that all vinyl/PVC hoses 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 $31,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Leeman and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.