Leeman v. Houdini, Inc.

The parties involved in the case Leeman v. Houdini, Inc. executed a Consent Judgment on November 8, 2016.  In this matter, citizen enforcer Whitney R. Leeman, Ph.D., alleged that Houdini, Inc. (“Houdini”) sold vinyl/PVC 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 agreement, Houdini agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC handles in California after the San Francisco County Superior Court enters the Judgment, unless the handles contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies OR have Proposition 65 warnings provided.

The Consent Judgment required settlement payments of up to $20,000, 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.