Werner Multi-Max Pro Ladder Lawsuit Alleges Locking Mechanism Failure Caused Severe Fall Injuries

Lawsuit alleges the Werner ladder’s locking mechanism failed despite the man properly extending and securing it before climbing.

An Ohio man has filed a product liability lawsuit after a Werner ladder allegedly collapsed while he was using it, causing him to fall and suffer severe fractures and permanent nerve damage.

The complaint (PDF) was brought by Bruce Sheridan on October 7, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, naming Werner Co., New Werner Holding Company Inc., doing business as ProDriven Global Brands, and The Home Depot Inc. as defendants.

Sheridan claims Werner and The Home Depot knew or should have known the ladder posed a fall hazard but failed to adequately warn consumers.

Werner Ladder Recall

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a recall for 122,000 Werner 20- and 24-foot Multi-Max Pro multi-purpose ladders on August 14, 2025. According to the recall notice, locking mechanisms on certain ladders had the ability to become jammed and not fully lock into place, posing a fall hazard.

At the time, the notice indicated Werner had received 18 reports of falls and 14 reports of injuries including lacerations, head injuries, fractures to the legs, ribs and wrist, and bruising.

A similar product liability lawsuit was filed against Werner in April, alleging a Missouri man fell from a defective Werner ladder and suffered severe injuries, including a displaced fracture of his right wrist that required surgery. The complaint indicates the ladder’s I-beam side rails buckled and bent, causing it to collapse while the man was near the roofline of his home.

Werner Ladder Injury Allegations

According to the new lawsuit, Sheridan was working as a project manager at a job site in Galena, Ohio, on October 21, 2024. He was using a Werner Multi-Max Pro multi-purpose ladder in its four-legged A-frame configuration to install permanent address numbers on a transom approximately eight feet above the ground.

Sheridan indicates that he placed the ladder on a flat concrete surface, extended it and locked it into position before climbing. He had already climbed up and down several times without incident when the locking mechanism at the base allegedly failed, causing the ladder to collapse and sending him falling approximately three feet to the ground.

Sheridan suffered severe injuries that required emergency medical treatment. He was initially taken to a local hospital before being transferred to another facility for surgery.

Among his injuries was a shattered left tibial plateau, which required surgery to repair the knee joint using two metal plates and eight screws. He also suffered compartment syndrome in his left leg, a fractured left fibula and left arm, a torn left meniscus and stress fractures in his left foot.

Sheridan claims he was left with permanent nerve damage, chronic pain in his left foot and ankle, arthritis in his left big toe, weakness in his left thigh muscles and difficulty walking.

Following multiple medical procedures, Sheridan was unable to put weight on his injured leg for three months. He required a hospital bed in his home, a stairlift and accessibility modifications, including a ramp. He was also treated for suspected deep-vein thrombosis and continues to receive medical care for ongoing pain, limited mobility and other lasting complications.

The lawsuit alleges that the ladder was defectively designed and that safer alternative designs were available, but Werner prioritized profits over consumer safety.

The Werner Multi-Max Pro ladder was sold exclusively through The Home Depot between November 2021 and February 2024. Sheridan claims both companies knew or should have known about the potential defect but failed to warn consumers about the risk of injury during normal use.

“The foreseeable risks of the design of the locking mechanism (including the risk that it would jam or fail to fully lock, causing sudden collapse and serious fall injuries) were of a nature, magnitude, and likelihood that outweighed any utility or benefits of the design.”

— Bruce Sheridan v. Werner Co. et al.

The lawsuit raises allegations of strict product liability—defective design or formulation, strict product liability—defective manufacture or construction and strict product liability—inadequate warning or instruction.

Sheridan seeks compensation for physical injuries, pain and suffering, emotional distress, permanent disability, loss of enjoyment of life, past and future medical expenses, loss of earning capacity and commissions and other economic and non-economic damages.

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