Moore v. Fiskars Brands, Inc.

In the enforcement action Moore v. Fiskars Brands, Inc., the parties executed a Consent Judgment on February 20, 2013, which resolved citizen enforcer John Moore’s allegations that the defendant Fiskars Brands, Inc. (“Fiskars”) sold tools with 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, Fiskars agreed not to sell any tools with grips in California after July 1, 2013, unless the tools contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or have the appropriate Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Additionally, Fiskars agreed to provide the reformulation standards to its vendors by March 17, 2013, and instruct them to provide tools that comply expeditiously.   Should Fiskars provide written certification that 75 percent of its tools qualify as reformulated by July 15, 2013, Moore agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.  In lieu of further civil penalties, Fiskars agreed to make a cy pres payment to the Silent Spring Institute, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to researching the links between exposure to environmental chemicals and developmental and reproductive harm. 

The Consent Judgment requires settlement payments of $155,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Moore and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.