Moore v. Gibson Guitar Corp., et al

The parties involved in the case Moore v. Gibson Guitar Corp., et al executed a Consent Judgment on February 4, 2015.  In this matter, citizen enforcer John Moore alleged that Gibson Guitar Corp. and Ace Product Management Group, Inc. (“Settling Defendants”) sold vinyl/PVC beverage mats 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, Settling Defendants agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC beverage mats in California after February 15, 2015, unless the cases contain no more than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in any accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.

The Consent Judgment required settlement payments of $70,000, 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.