Vinocur v. Iceberg Enterprises, LLC

On August 8, 2017, citizen enforcer Laurence Vinocur and settling party Iceberg Enterprises, LLC (“Iceberg”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Vinocur had alleged that Iceberg sold chairs with vinyl/PVC upholstery 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, Iceberg agreed not to sell any chairs with vinyl/PVC upholstery in California after September 8, 2017, unless the products contain less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or have Proposition 65 warnings provided. Existing inventory shall be sold with Proposition 65 warnings included.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $15,500, 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.