Leeman v. SIIG, Inc.

On February 4, 2016, citizen enforcer Whitney R. Leeman, Ph.D and settling party SIIG, Inc.  (“SIIG”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Leeman had alleged that SIIG sold vinyl/PVC audio 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 settlement, SIIG agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC audio cables in California after March 1, 2016, unless the cables contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or have Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Should SIIG provide Leeman with written certification by October 1, 2016 that all vinyl/PVC audio cables 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 $27,250, 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.