Proposition 65 Warning

Our client Anthony Held, Ph.D, P.E., has filed a complaint against 11 defendants alleging the sale of sunscreen containing the chemical benzophenone without the requisite Proposition 65 warning.  Benzophenone is a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer, and companies offering products for sale in California that contain benzophenone must provide consumers with a “clear and reasonable” health hazard warning.  The alleged violators include Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Rite Aid, Walgreen, and Wal-Mart.

Held seeks civil penalties, an injunction to prevent the companies from manufacturing, distributing, or offering the products for sale or use in California without Proposition 65 warnings, and such other and further relief as the court deems just and proper.

The Chanler Group represents citizen enforcers who, acting in the public interest, commence actions against businesses offering products for sale in California that contain chemicals known to cause cancer or reproductive harm without first providing the health hazard warning required by Proposition 65. Citizen enforcers bringing Proposition 65 actions in the public interest may obtain a Court Judgment imposing civil penalties, an injunction requiring reformulation of products, and/or provision of health hazard warnings. The Chanler Group has represented citizen enforcers of Proposition 65 for more than twenty years.

Citizen enforcer Paul Wozniak has entered into a settlement agreement with Hancock Fabrics in regards to 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) without the requisite health hazard warnings.  Lead and DEHP are known to the State of California to cause cancer and/or birth defects and reproductive harm, and companies offering products for sale that contain such chemicals are required by Proposition 65 to provide consumers with a “clear and reasonable” health hazard warning.

In addition to paying $16,000 in civil penalties, 75 percent of which go to the State of California to further public health and the environment, Hancock has agreed to sell only reformulated products in California that are virtually free of lead and DEHP.  Should Hancock provide written certification by November 1, 2014 that all jars and baskets in California are reformulated, Wozniak agreed to waive a portion of the fine.

For more details, see the case summary on our website: Wozniak v. Hancock Fabrics, Inc.

The Chanler Group represents citizen enforcers who, acting in the public interest, commence actions against businesses offering products for sale in California that contain chemicals known to cause cancer or reproductive harm without first providing the health hazard warning required by Proposition 65. Citizen enforcers bringing Proposition 65 actions in the public interest may obtain a Court Judgment imposing civil penalties, an injunction requiring reformulation of products, and/or provision of health hazard warnings. The Chanler Group has represented citizen enforcers of Proposition 65 for more than twenty years.

Client Anthony Held, Ph.D, P.E., has filed a complaint against Avery Dennison Corporation alleging that the company has been selling journals in California that contain lead, without the requisite health hazard warning.  Lead is a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer and reproductive harm, and companies offering products for sale that contain such chemicals must, under Proposition 65 law, provide consumers with a “clear and reasonable” health hazard warning.  Avery Dennison is a global manufacturer and distributor of office supplies.

Held seeks civil penalties, an injunction to prevent Avery Dennison from selling its products without a Proposition 65 warning, and such other and further relief as the court deems just and proper.

The Chanler Group represents citizen enforcers who, acting in the public interest, commence actions against businesses offering products for sale in California that contain chemicals known to cause cancer or reproductive harm without first providing the health hazard warning required by Proposition 65. Citizen enforcers bringing Proposition 65 actions in the public interest may obtain a Court Judgment imposing civil penalties, an injunction requiring reformulation of products, and/or provision of health hazard warnings. The Chanler Group has represented citizen enforcers of Proposition 65 for more than twenty years.