Rare Court Decision In CPSC-Backed Enforcement Action

A federal district court in Wisconsin recently ruled against a product manufacturer, finding it liable for failing to report timely in a rare U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) backed lawsuit. United States v. Spectrum Brands, Inc., No. 15-CV-371-WMC, 2016 WL 6835371, at *24 (W.D. Wis. Nov. 17, 2016). While CPSC actively oversees voluntary recalls,¹ it seldom brings suit in court. In Spectrum Brands, the Wisconsin district court interpreted the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA) to grant CPSC broad latitude in seeking and levying penalties for failure to report potential product safety hazards.

BACKGROUND

In November 2014, Spectrum merged with Applica Consumer Products, Inc. ("Applica"), leaving Spectrum to assume all of Applica's assets and liabilities. Between 2008 and 2012, Applica imported coffeemakers from China and sold them in the United States. During the same period, Applica received numerous customer complaints that the coffeemaker's carafe