A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit claiming that Home Depot Inc. deceived customers about the size of lumber sold in its stores, according to documents filed with the U.S. District Court in Illinois on March 12.
In the suit, plaintiff Mikhail Abramov alleged that he was misled into a purchase by labeling on the retailer's lumber that read "4X4-6," when the actual dimensions were 3.5 by 3.5 inches.
Home Depot, in turn, claimed that people who work with lumber are aware that the sizes used to describe it do not accurately describe its measurements.
U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman ruled that size labels on the lumber would not be "capable of misleading a reasonable consumer in light of all the information available."
The plaintiff's allegations "describe no more than a label that was potentially confusing to some consumers," Coleman wrote in her dismissal.
The judge dismissed the case without prejudice, which gives Abramov the ability to refile his complaint.
