Load floor latch

A latch for releasably securing a closure member in a closed position, the latch comprising:

• a housing adapted for being received in an aperture formed in the closure member, said housing having a first cavity having a bottom and an open top, said bottom having an underside, said housing further having a receptacle attached to said underside of said bottom of said first cavity, said housing further including second and third cavities positioned on either side of said receptacle and extending downward from said bottom, each of said second and third cavities having open tops;
• a handle pivotally attached to said housing and movable between an open and a closed position, said handle being received in said first cavity when said handle is in said closed position, said handle having a pair of actuating arms each housed in a respective one of said second and third cavities;
• a pawl slideably supported by said housing so as to be movable between a latched and an unlatched position, said pawl being biased toward said latched position, said pawl projecting from said receptacle when in said latched position, and said pawl being retracted inward within said receptacle when said pawl is in said unlatched position;
• and
• an actuator slideably supported at least in part within said first cavity and being engageable to said pawl, said actuator having a pair of lateral legs each of which extends into a respective one of said second and third cavities and is engaged by a respective one of said pair of actuating arms as said handle is moved pivotally from closed position toward said open position, said actuator being supported such that said actuator moves linearly with said pawl and in a direction parallel to a direction of movement of said pawl rearward within said receptacle as said handle is moved pivotally toward said open position,
• whereby pivotal movement of said handle to said open position causes said pawl to retract to said unlatched position.