Vinocur v. Milan Pacific USA LLC

On October 31, 2016, citizen enforcer Laurence Vinocur and settling party Milan Pacific USA LLC (“Milan Pacific”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Vinocur had alleged that Milan Pacific sold business card holders 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, Milan Pacific agreed not to sell any business card holders in California after October 31, 2016, unless the holders contained less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP in each accessible component when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $20,000, 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.