MSLaw Blog

The Trump administration continues to bring with it changes in both the staff and politically appointed positions within the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). On Thursday and Friday, the three Democratic commissioners of the CPSC were fired, effective immediately. The fired commissioners – Mary Boyle, Richard Trumka Jr. and former CPSC Chair Alex Hoehn-Saric –  have already stated their intent to challenge their dismissals in court. Click here to read a statement from former CPSC Chair Alex Hoehn-Saric that summarizes

On March 28, 2019, a federal grand jury indicted two executives for failing to timely report that the dehumidifiers their companies imported and distributed were known to catch fire. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, this is the “first-ever criminal prosecution for failure to report under the Consumer Product Safety Act.” Click here to read the full Law360 article written by Holly Drumheller Butler and Dwight Stone about a recent DOJ indictment for violating the CPSA through late reporting and misrepresentations - plus, how companies can avoid

As required by statute and Executive Order, the CPSC published its semi-annual regulatory agenda on June 11, 2018, which summarizes regulatory changes that the CPSC expects to develop or review over the course of the upcoming year.   The June 2018 agenda should be of particular interest to companies involved in the manufacturing, distribution or sale of upholstered furniture, table saws, portable generators and recreational off-road vehicles (ROVs).   More specifically, the agenda highlights the following regulatory issues:   plans to prepare a briefing

On June 4, President Trump nominated Peter Feldman as Commissioner of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. As we previously reported, the recent Senate confirmation of Commissioner Dana Baiocco created a 2-2 split between Democrats and Republicans. If, as expected, Mr. Feldman is confirmed, the Commission will have a Republican majority for the first time in almost 12 years. This will presumably enable Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle to steer the Commission toward policies and practices that reflect her regulatory philosophy.    

The United States Senate recently confirmed former Jones Day litigator Dana Baiocco as the newest Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Baiocco replaces former Commissioner Marietta Robinson, and her term runs through October 2024.   As previously reported Baiocco’s original nomination to the Commission was returned by the Senate, along with the nomination of Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle and those of nearly 100 other nominees for various agencies in January of this year, before she was re-nominated by President Trump days

President Trump wasted no time in re-nominating CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle for permanent Chairman and for a second term as Commissioner of the agency. Dana Baiocco was also re-nominated for Commissioner. As we recently reported, the Senate returned these nominations to the White House on January 3, 2018, along with those of almost 100 others who had been nominated for various agencies, departments and judgeships. A mere five days later, the White House announced the re-nomination of most of these candidates. Although

As previously reported here, Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle has been awaiting U.S. Senate confirmation as permanent Chairman of the CPSC, and Jones Day litigator Dana Baiocco has been awaiting confirmation as the replacement for Commissioner Marietta Robinson. However, a degree of uncertainty has now arisen because last week the Senate returned these nominations to President Trump.   While ordinarily the Senate will hold over a pending nomination to the new Congress, such a nomination will be returned if a senator objects,

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”), by unanimous vote, has approved a final rule providing that seven plastics in children’s toys and child care articles will no longer require third-party testing because they do not exceed limits on phthalates. The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) bans children’s toys or child care articles containing concentrations above 0.1% of certain specified phthalates, and requires third-party testing to ensure subject products are in compliance before they can enter the stream of commerce

On September 21, 2017, President Trump nominated Dana Baiocco to replace Commissioner Marietta S. Robinson when her term at the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) expires on October 26. Ms. Baiocco is a partner at Jones Day in Boston and a seasoned product liability litigator. Ms. Baiocco received a B.S. in 1988 from Ohio University and a J.D. from Duquesne University in 1997. She has experience in mass torts and consumer product litigation, as well as representing clients in CPSC matters.      Ms.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) announced on August 29 it has provisionally agreed with Home Depot U.S.A., Inc. to a $5.7 million settlement of allegations that the retailer unlawfully sold recalled products over a four year period.  The settlement will almost certainly become final once The Commission considers public comments as required by its rules. The CPSC staff alleges in the settlement agreement  that Home Depot “knowingly” sold or distributed approximately 2,816 units of 33 different recalled products from 2012 to 2016,

On July 25, 2017, President Trump announced that he would nominate Acting Chairman Buerkle to be the permanent Chairman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Anne Marie Buerkle was appointed to the CPSC by President Obama and confirmed by the Senate in June 2013. In February, she became Acting Chairman when Commissioner Kaye resigned as Chairman at the request of the administration. Commissioner Buerkle’s current term expires in October 2018. The nomination as Chairman is for a new seven year term beginning

For those of you who have recently conducted a recall, you may have noticed that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has been paying more attention to monthly progress reports on the status of recalls. Every corrective action approved by the CPSC requires submission of progress reports every month, typically for a year after the recall. In the past, companies have sometimes fallen behind in filing progress reports, and CPSC on occasion let that go by. But no more. Starting

The CPSC has announced it is seeking “suggestions for ways the Commission could potentially reduce burdens and costs of its existing rules, regulations, or practices without harming consumers.” The CPSC requests that suggestions be submitted by September 30, 2017, and that “information and data be submitted in support” of suggestions.   CPSC Acting Chairman Ann Marie Buerkle stated that the request “is not limited to existing rules. CPSC is interested in hearing any and all ideas, big or small, that might help ease regulatory