Moorberg v. McCalou’s, Inc.

The parties involved in the case Moorberg v. McCalou’s, Inc. executed a Consent Judgment on June 5, 2015.  In this matter, citizen enforcer Mark Moorberg alleged that McCalou’s, Inc. (“McCalou’s”) sold vinyl/PVC clutches containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”) and the heavy metal lead in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.  

As part of the agreement, McCalou’s agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC clutches in California after the Alameda County Superior Court approves the Judgment, unless the clutches contain no more than 1,000 parts per million (“ppm”) of DEHP or 90 ppm of lead when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies.  McCalou’s has also agreed to provide the above reformulation standards to their suppliers and instruct them to comply expeditiously.  All existing inventory shall be sold with Proposition 65 warnings provided.  Should McCalou’s provide written certification that all vinyl/PVC clutches sold in California qualify as reformulated by 45 days after the Effective Date, Moorberg agreed to waive a portion of the civil fine that would otherwise be applied.

The Consent Judgment required settlement payments of $40,000, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to whistleblower Moorberg and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.