Wozniak v. Hancock Fabrics, Inc.

Posted: 09/30/2014  browse the case archive

Citizen enforcer Paul Wozniak and settling party Hancock Fabrics, Inc. (“Hancock”) entered into an out-of-court Settlement Agreement on September 30, 2014, which resolved Wozniak’s allegations that Hancock sold jars with exterior decorations containing the heavy metal lead and storage baskets 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, Hancock agreed not to sell the specific jars, storage baskets, or other additional products mentioned in the Settlement Agreement in California after October 1, 2014, unless the products meet the reformulation requirements outlined in Section 2.2 and 2.3 of the Settlement Agreement.  Should Hancock provide written certification by November 1, 2014, and continuing into the future, that all jars and baskets sold in California qualify as reformulated, Wozniak agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied. 

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $41,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Wozniak and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.  

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