SALT LAKE CITY -- It isn't every day that a small Utah company needs the services of Rudy Giuliani's law firm.

But a Lindon candlemaker, For Every Body, turned to Giuliani's law firm for help last November when it had to deal with the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The company wanted to show its products were safe after a customer trying to make the most of a nearly burned-out candle jar watched it break, spill wax and mar a table, said Ken Austin, director of technical services at For Every Body.

He said For Every Body voluntarily reported the woman's complaint last November and, with the help of Giuliani's Houston-based law firm, Bracewell & Giuliani, convinced safety-commission staffers that the candle jars were safe when used properly.

"A month ago, we filed our final report with the Safety Commission, which found our candles are safe," Austin said.

The company, which also makes bath-and-beauty products, had never dealt with the commission and hired a law firm known to have that experience.

"We used Giuliani's firm because one of our management group had worked with them at a previous company that also had consumer product safety issues," Austin said.

"We know we need to report incidences, or risk being fined for not reporting soon enough. But the agency had no clear guidelines as to when you contact them and how to report," he said.

Austin said he worked with the firm's Washington, D.C., office, and not with the former New York City mayor and Republican presidential candidate. The company didn't require high-powered influence for a brief encounter with the agency.

"If we could afford Giuliani as a lobbyist, we'd be bigger than 150 employees," he said. "We didn't spend any money on his lobbying campaign. Our name was mentioned in the lobbying document because we've had dealings with his law firm."

The 400-lawyer firm billed his company a nominal, one-time amount, he said, declining to specify a figure.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission was debating last year whether to adopt fire-safety standards for candles but decided to leave it to the industry.

Giuliani's law firm apparently listed the Utah company as a lobbying client with a stake in the matter, but Austin said the company wasn't involved, leaving deliberations to the National Candle Association.

Giuliani's dealings are coming under scrutiny as his campaign relies on partners and employees of his many business interests for political donations. Giuliani will disclose the broad ranges of his personal net worth in a financial disclosure due Tuesday.

Business editor Grace Leong contributed to this report.

On the Net:

For Every Body: www.foreverybody.com

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D6.