Proposition 65

Wendel Rosen attorneys provide compliance counseling, claim defense and litigation representation on Proposition 65 matters for clients in the wide range of manufacturing, food and beverage, industrial, and retail businesses.

Retail Minefields

Prop 65, enacted in 1986 as the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act (California Health and Safety Code Section 25249.5 et seq.), requires businesses to provide a clear and reasonable warning before exposing a person in California to a chemical listed by the state as causing cancer or reproductive harm. There are currently approximately 900 chemicals on the list, creating a minefield for retailers who have no way of knowing what chemicals are in the products on their shelves.

Manufacturing Measures

Manufacturers face difficult challenges when selling online, shipping to other states, or supplying distributors with unknown destinations. If their manufacturing facilities are located in California, they may have notification obligations with respect to the workplace and their own employees. And if they supply parts that are integrated into other products, what then? Wendel Rosen attorneys can help devise mechanisms to tackle these issues.

Notification and Compliance

We advise on appropriate warning language and methods, including the new regulations taking effect August 31, 2018. We counsel clients on risk allocation through indemnification agreements and other compliance strategies suitable for a particular product line and marketplace engagement. We can provide guidance on statutory exemptions and risk assessments.

Defending Claims

Finally, if the lawsuit comes, we can counsel clients on their defenses and best strategies through litigation or a negotiated settlement. Weƒ have handled numerous claims, working with clients to investigate product concerns, assess their legal liability, undertake risk assessments to evaluate the need for warnings, address alleged violations, and resolve threatened or live litigation and settle claims from other parties in the supply chain.