Leeman v. Night Owl SP, LLC

Whistleblower Dr. Whitney R. Leeman and settling party Night Owl SP, LLC (“Night Owl”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement on June 25, 2015.  Leeman had alleged that Night Owl sold tools with vinyl/PVC grips 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, Night Owl agreed not to sell any tools with vinyl/PVC grips in California after September 15, 2015, unless the grips contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component.  Should Night Owl provide Leeman with written certification by July 31, 2015 that all tools with vinyl/PVC grips 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 $33,250, 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.