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Crazy law suit

Seems a bit frivolous to me . Everyone knows lumber dimensions as advertised are not reality. It surely came from the mind of a lawyer not a carpenter.
 
Yes crazy and yes from the mind of a lawyer and/or yuppie.
On the other hand I do remember going into a lumber store and actually getting a 2X4 that measured 2" by 4". Actually my very first recollection is working for an older carpenter who ramrodding updating and old house, we were up in the attic and I thought the rafters were kinda big. They measured fully 2X8. The old fella said that's what they use to be. If you live in a house 50+ years old climb into the attic and measure the rafters well maybe 75 years old.
So who are these foolish lawyers going to sue next the mills?
 

I suppose it's not that far fetched when you consider that there are whole generations of people who have never been out of the city--plus, the only hands on experience they've ever had with anything is with a smart phone or a video game controller--plus many schools these days don't have any type of shop class anymore. So where is a person supposed to learn this stuff? The current crop of yuppies have no clue about a lot of the things the rest of us take for granted. It's really quite sad, actually.

The article should also have mentioned that those timbers started out at 4" x 4" before they were planed smooth, and that that is where the term originally came from.
 
America has never been sicker. What a bunch of educated idiots we have indeed created....not all....but too many.
 
Two thoughts came to mind when I read this. 1, lumber has been called by its rough cut designation for over 30 years...and 2, men have been exaggerating the size of things since time immemorial. :lol:
 
Now days, anyone can sue anyone else for any reason, at any time, anywhere, for any amount of "damages" and the courts will say okay, bring it on. A good judge would throw this case out and chew out the lawyer for wasting the court's time with such a frivolous case.
 
Still, it just doesn't seem possible that someone could actually get things this far. When I was just getting started in construction, 2x4's were 1.75" x 3.75". Even then, they were sold as 2x4's with the notation, "Nominal Size". 2x4 is what the boards were cut to when green, then dried, then surfaced 4 sides, so hadn't been actual 2x4 size in like forever!

It would have actually made (to me) a more believable lawsuit if they'd gone after the length of the boards, as some measure slightly short while others can be up to 1/2" long!
 
When you look at the price of lumber, it's hard to believe the stuff grows on trees.
 
I don't have the time to read the article past the second paragraph where it states [class action]. class action means an attorney and or a firm dreamed this up and only the lawyers involved will profit, both sides.

lawyers turn into politicians and they all make the laws that allow this crap! and lets not forget the lobbyist.
 
Good grief ! 2x4 etc. is the nominal size, the finished size is 1 1/2x3 1/2. Just think of the lawsuits if the customers bought nominal sized (rough) and got a splinter in their little finger !
 
Well, Subway had some sort of legal proceedings against them when it was discovered that their 'foot long' sub measured only 11 1/2 inches. Ben
 
Read to the bottom of the article and you'll see where it came from:

"As Turin described it, all three men in the lawsuits wanted the lumber for home-improvement projects, got home and measured the pieces, felt they had been deceived and then turned to the law firm.

Asked whether it was coincidence that three different men found the same sort of issue with lumber first at Menards and then at Home Depot, and then all decided to go to McGuire Law, Turin said he couldn?t comment."
 
You aren't much better. Those houses were build with rough sawn lumber before sized lumber was used. The Amish still build with rough sawn timbers, but many code enforcement offices around here won't accept their construction, not because it is structurally unsound but because the lumber is not sized and graded.
All trusses/rafters are designed and load caring ability are based on sized lumber, and by species and fasteners used. Politicians and Lawyers have twisted everything in this country into knots that we can never unravel.
Loren
 
geez what they heck are they gonna do when they find out a 16 penny nail doesnt have any pennies in it???????????????
 
Such things happen only in the US,

I could tell you why but many of you probably do not want to know so I will demurrer.

Blame the plaintiff's bar and the political party inside their hip pocket.

Dean
 
People want something for nothing, so forget the actual vs nominal thing, the plethora of lumber standards that have been in place as an accepted industry standard. The customer has still been deceived and must sue to get their 23% worth back, plus damages. The attorneys that cater to this market surely enable these kinds of suits.

Much of today's society has lost their mind. They have been harmed by 23% less material because they want something different than what has been standard for years They then need $5M to be compensated ?

Take all these thankless fools and send them to a third world country where you'll fight to the death to survive.
 
The suit makes no sense, but I guess nowadays that doesn't matter. Now . . . same stores selling 20lb. propane bottles with only 15 lbs.? A rip-off yes, but they DO have a sign saying they are only filled to 15 lbs. So I just get mine filled at a fill station. Maybe they will be the next "big" lawsuit.

Funny thing is - the partial 15 lb. fill began not long ago when propane prices had gone right up. Home Depot said that Blue Rino was only filling to 15 lbs. to keep prices down but it was only temporary. Well prices went back down, and they are still 15 lbs.

I just got a bunch of rough white pine 4 X 4s and they are like 4 1/2" X 4 1/2" Maybe I have to sue the sawmill because they gave me too much wood?
 
Men have been lying since the beginning of time about size. What's next, my ex girlfriends during me?
 
Lumber yards should carry some rough sawn 2x4s and 4x4s just for iodides like these. Make them pay extra if the want finished lumber.
 
I agree this is ridicules lawsuit however you cannot use the argument that it is the dimensions before planed. That is the argument you used
when 4x4 measured 3 3/4x3 3/4 so how can you explain 3 1/2x3 1/2?
 
The result of this will be yet more worthless labels because of lawsuits.

Device I got today stated power cord had a chemical content known by the State of California to cause cancer. Wash hands after use. Ha ha ha ha.

I spilled my hot coffee trying to read the label warning me it was hot.

What value will there be for another label warning us that dimensional lumber may be sized according to government standards.

Next they are going to get sued for selling 14 gauge wire which is smaller than 12 gauge. Who knew?
 
They sure would have fun trying to trim and finish around the windows and doors with true 2X4's. Why does my drywall stick out past the door jambs?
 
And you look any lumber up on their web site and it says actuall size in the description.
 
Corral boards are 1" X 6".
If you measure the length of a 2 X 4 or a 2 X 6 you will find it is a bit longer than 8', 10', 12' and so on.
A 16' will be around 16'-5/8". A 20' will be 20'- 3/4".
 
what law suits aren't crazy? i bet 75% are a get rich quick idea. the common thinking seems to be well they are a big company they have lots of money. not realizing most major companies are owned by stock holders.
it is my understanding lumber dimensions are set by good old uncle sam.
so I think these jerks are suing the wrong people.
 
This has nothing to do with lumber.......it has everything to do with John Menard and what causes he supports and what causes he fights against and who he has rubbed the wrong way. This is the future of our country......warfare thru the courts. If we can't get you at the ballot box......we will bring down your supporters.
 
Seems to me that everything is known to the state of California to cause cancer. Seeing that label on every part of daily life gets a bit tiring after a while.
 
Our truth in advertising laws would have kicked in long ago if our advertised lumber dimensions was that big of a deal.
 
Wonder why you never hear of District Attorneys bringing charges against the lawyers and clients filing frivolous lawsuits like they are supposed to?
 
Sticker on my new knife read "Caution: your new knife could cut you"! Well duuuh, I needed to know that?
 
I think lawyers will do what the client asks, and if somebody gets upset because of dimensional / nominal lumber, a lawyer will do what the client asks, if he / she thinks it is possible. I imagine this all starts with the client.
 
Anybody can sue anyone for anything. How far they get in court is another matter. The owner of Murray Energy sued HBO last week because John Oliver said true but unflattering things about him and his coal company. Don't expect that lawsuit to go anywhere, although it will make a few yacht payments for the various lawyers involved.

Law firms specializing in class action suits must be running out of good cases, or maybe they just see the big box hardware stores as easier targets than their old favorites, auto and pharmaceutical companies. Many of those companies are taking a hard line against class action suits, figuring litigating a few now will save them money in the long run.

I'm guessing the plaintiffs' cases are based on too-literal descriptions by the defendants. It wouldn't be false advertising to describe a post as "4x4x8". But to describe it as "4 in. x 4 in. x 8 ft." would be incorrect.
 
> I imagine this all starts with the client.

I imagine it does NOT. Sure, there are cases that start with an actual plaintiff, but this is not one of them.
 
> Wonder why you never hear of District Attorneys bringing charges against the lawyers and clients filing frivolous lawsuits like they are supposed to?

Because that's not their job. It is not a crime to file a frivolous lawsuit, although repeatedly doing so could get an attorney disbarred.
 
what if you bought by board feet...say a thousand board ft lol ...same as frozen food with water added,,it could just keep piling up..
 
That lawsuit should be very easy to defend against as there are long established industry and government standards for dimensional lumber. However there are always some sub-standard products that don't meet those standards.

It would be interesting to know if the law firm had enough confidence in the case to take on the case for 1/3 of the verdict, or if the client had to pay a straight hourly rate because the law firm does not think it is winnable.
 
Its a class action suit, which is even better than a contingency (1/3 of the take) case. The judge may throw it out at an early stage for being "frivolous", in that everybody knows about lumber sizing, but it probably won't go to trial- there will be a "class action settlement", in which everyone who can show a receipt during a certain time period will be given a dollar or two, but the law firm will end up with millions. I would really like to see the defendants fight this one all the way, given that the plaintiffs (and their attorneys) are such idiots. Would be nice to see the lawyers stuck holding the bag, for once.
 
Had a friend in Montana large lumber mill. Asked one day as had read the mill just replaced band saws with new tougher thinner blades just how wide is actual cut . He laughed and replied that's a trade secret how much we can cheat on the finished product. They buy on full size board feet and can cut out at least 15 percent more. Also new blades require very little planning and sometimes boards will have saw marks on construction grade lumber. Not taking any sides, however law suit sure gives something to think about on the side of the original sawmill purchase.
 
The judge should throw it out as frivolous, then sentence the lawyer and plaintiff to each work 40 hours on a Habitat for humanity project so they could learn what a real 2X4 looks like.

Gene
 
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