Proposition 65 & Green
Chemistry

Greenberg Traurig’s attorneys provide experienced advocacy in all types of Proposition 65 matters, most of which have political, as well as legal and financial, components. Greenberg Traurig has key relationships with the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), the Attorney General’s office, the Governor’s office, and the few consultants who interpret the science used in both the listing process and enforcement actions.

Greenberg Traurig can help when: 

• California proposes to place a chemical on the state’s list of known carcinogens and reproductive toxicants 
• Your business is issued a pre-suit notice of violation or is sued under Proposition 65 alleging exposures to Californians to a listed chemical without warning 
• You have products that should be evaluated for compliance with Proposition 65

Representative Experience

Our attorneys and governmental affairs professionals have been intimately involved with Proposition 65 since the statute was codified in 1986. Our experience includes: 

• Defending enforcement actions by private plaintiffs and the AG, including leading joint defense groups in large industry cases with important implications
• Monitoring every meeting of the advisory panels and identification committees that decide to list chemicals 
• Representing clients in advocacy to OEHHA on issues involving chemical listing and promulgated safe harbors 
• Helping develop safe use determination applications to OEHHA for determinations that certain uses of listed chemicals are safe without a warning 

Listed Chemicals

Greenberg Traurig has experience in listing and enforcement actions involving a wide range of chemicals, including: 

• Acrylamide
• Inorganic Arsenic
• Bisphenol A (BPA)
• Bisphenol S (BPS)
• Cadmium
• DEA
• Formaldehyde
• Hexavalent Chromium
• Lead
• Mercury
• PFOA/PFOS
• Phthalates (e.g. DEHP)
• Styrene
• Titanium dioxide (TiO2)

Enforcement Actions

• Defended businesses and trade groups in actions targeting industries or consumer products, including cosmetics and foods
• Prevailed in the California Court of Appeals on federal preemption of Proposition 65 warning requirements for some FDA-regulated products
• Negotiated with the attorney general to set the naturally occurring level of lead in eight mineral supplements

Listing Process and Rulemaking

• Marshaled legal argument and scientific data to advocate to OEHHA and its identification committees that certain chemicals should not be listed as carcinogens or reproductive toxicants
• Advise clients and advocate to OEHHA concerning proposed safe harbor exposure levels and chemical listings; prepare comments for industry groups

About Greenberg Traurig’s Prop 65 & Green Chemistry Group: Greenberg Traurig’s Proposition 65 & Green Chemistry Group provides advocacy to clients as they navigate the legal, regulatory and technical aspects of Proposition 65. The team combines Proposition 65 litigators with regulatory lawyers and public policy advocates, providing clients with a unique bench of experience from which to draw in any circumstance. The team also includes individuals with years of experience working with government officials in California, including the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), the Attorney General's Office, and the Governor's Office, in addition to the many consultants who interpret the science used in litigation and the chemical listing process.