Vinocur v. Art Supply Enterprises, Inc.

On July 1, 2016, citizen enforcer Laurence Vinocur and settling party Art Supply Enterprises, Inc. (“Art Supply”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Vinocur had alleged that Art Supply sold vinyl/PVC tool 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, Art Supply agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC tool grips in California after July 8, 2016, unless the grips contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $18,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Vinocur and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.