Moore v. Novelty, Inc.

On June 6, 2016, the parties involved in the case Moore v. Novelty, Inc. executed a Consent Judgment.  In this matter, citizen enforcer John Moore alleged that Novelty, Inc. (“Novelty”) sold earphones with vinyl/PVC cords 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, Novelty agreed not to sell any earphones with vinyl/PVC cords in California after the San Mateo County Superior Court approves the Judgment, unless the cords 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.

The Consent Judgment required settlement payments of $28,000, 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.