FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A Florida man, in a federal lawsuit filed this month, claims that the maker of a multi-position ladder sold in Home Depot stores failed to warn consumers of its design defects.
Plaintiff Josue Ghelman, a Broward County resident, filed his lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Fort Lauderdale Division, Nov. 18.
The named defendants include Tricam Industries Inc. in Minnesota and Home Depot USA Inc., based in Georgia.
According to the lawsuit, Tricam specializes in the design, development, and engineering of consumer and professional home improvement goods, including their Gorilla Ladders.
The multi-position ladders feature 20 adjustable telescoping positions and three scaffold positions. They are distributed and sold to the public in Home Depot stores.
Ghelman alleges he purchased his ladder at a Home Depot in Hialeah, Miami-Dade County, on June 11, 2024.
According to his 15-page complaint, he did not use the ladder until June 16, 2024. He claims he used the ladder to install a security camera on the outside section of his apartment.
He contends he positioned the ladder on the entrance to the apartment, which is “cemented and perfectly even.” He also made sure the railing and latches were safely locked.
“He then climbed the ladder to drill some small holes in the wall,” Ghelman’s complaint states. “As he started to drill, he felt a movement and suddenly and without warning the latch twisted and broke, causing him to fall backwards, and in an attempt to protect his head, the body took the brunt of the fall.”
He claims the fly section of the ladder buckled, causing a “catastrophic failure” and “serious and significant injuries.”
Ghelman’s filing argues Tricam was negligent in selling a product that was “defective and unreasonably dangerous”
“From the time that the ladder was designed and manufactured to the time of the incident that forms the basis of this complaint, no material alterations were made to the ladder, and it reached the user without substantial change affecting its condition,” the complaint states.
“The ladder was dangerous beyond the expectation of the ordinary and reasonable user, when used as intended, or in a manner reasonably foreseeable by the Defendant.”
He contends Home Depot also owed him a duty to provide a product that was “reasonably safe” for its intended use, and to warn of the dangers associated with the use of the ladder.
Ghelman claims he suffered bodily injury, pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, mental anguish, hospital expenses, medical and nursing expenses, aggravation of a previously existing condition, and the loss of past and future earnings.
He seeks compensatory damages for his injuries, expenses, earning losses, and emotional distress.
Lawlor & Associates PA in Boca Raton is representing Ghelman in the action.
