Moore v. Foremost Groups, Inc.

On September 25, 2012, citizen enforcer John Moore and settling defendant Foremost Groups, Inc. ("Foremost") entered into an out-of-court Settlement Agreement, which resolved Moore's allegations that Foremost sold ottomans 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, Foremost agreed not to sell any ottomans in California after September 26, 2012, unless the ottomans contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or have Proposition 65 warnings provided as identified in Section 2.2 (a) and (b) of the Settlement Agreement. Should Foremost eliminate the need for Proposition 65 warnings on the ottomans by February 15, 2013, Moore agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $35,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which was 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.