Forensic Engineering

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Six types of forensic engineering assignments

An expert report isn't an inspection with a more serious letterhead. It has to establish facts, answer the questions the court will ask and withstand cross-examination. These are the six types of assignment we carry out most often for lawyers, insurers and parties to a dispute.

II

What sets a forensic assessment apart from an inspection

An inspection answers the question “what's wrong?” A forensic assessment answers “since when, who could have known, and what will it cost?” It also has to hold up under challenge.

The Code of Civil Procedure gives the expert a specific mission: to enlighten the court. That mission takes precedence over the interests of the party that retains the expert, and it must be carried out objectively, impartially and thoroughly. That is what gives the report its value: a judge gives weight to the expert who also explains the limits of their conclusions, not to the one who argues a side.

In practice, we turn down assignments that require a predetermined conclusion, and we tell our client from the first visit when the facts don't support their position. That avoids costly proceedings that are lost from the start, and it makes our reports credible when the position is well founded.

• Established facts, not impressions: dimensional surveys, dated photographs, exploratory openings, moisture readings, verifiable calculations, and a clear line between what is observed and what is inferred.
• A timeline: dates of construction, sale, discovery and notice of the defect (art. 1739 C.C.Q.), previous work, and the involvement of other parties.
• An analysis against the applicable Code: the rules in force at the time of construction, not today's, and the accepted practice of the period.
• A documented cost of corrective work: an item-by-item estimate, a distinction between what corrects the defect and what improves the building, and validation with contractor quotes when the file allows.

III

The situations that call for a forensic assessment

Four situations come up in nearly all of our assignments. In each one, the point at which the engineer gets involved changes a lot: sooner is better than later.

• Document

  You've just bought and you discover a defect

  A major crack, a sagging floor, a foundation repaired behind new cladding: before any formal notice is sent, the assessment establishes whether the defect meets the criteria of a latent defect, determines its cause and puts a cost on the work. It is the basis for the claim or the negotiation.

• Respond

  You're a seller, contractor or syndicate facing a claim

  You've been served with a formal notice or an originating application. The counter-assessment checks the allegations, the causal link and the amounts claimed, separates a real defect from normal wear or lack of maintenance, and prepares your defence or a reasonable settlement.

• Determine

  A loss whose cause is disputed

  Insurer, policyholder or third party named in the claim: the assessment determines the cause of the loss and separates sudden damage from wear, poor maintenance or a construction defect, with all that this distinction means for coverage, the indemnity and claims against those responsible.

• Litigate

  Your lawyer needs an expert

  An assessment that complies with the Code of Civil Procedure, testimony at the hearing, preparation for cross-examining the opposing expert, technical analysis of a faulty workmanship or builder liability file: we work directly with the law firm, within the procedural deadlines.

IV

Our approach, from the file to the testimony

An assessment is won in the preparation. Every step produces an exhibit the court can verify.

1. Reviewing the fileDeed of sale and seller's declarations, previous inspection reports, plans, permits, photographs, formal notices and exchanges between the parties. We clarify the questions the assessment must answer, check for conflicts of interest and send a written service proposal.
2. Visit and measurementsDetailed inspection of the elements involved, dimensional and level surveys, dated photographs, moisture readings, localized exploratory openings with the parties' consent, in the presence of the opposing expert when the proceedings require it.
3. AnalysisCauses and mechanisms of the problem, pre-existence, compliance with the Code and accepted practice in force at the time of construction, capacity calculations, timeline, cost of corrective work. We always distinguish between observation, hypothesis and conclusion.
4. Expert reportA report structured for the court (mandate, methodology, findings, analysis, conclusions, appendices), signed and sealed, with the expert's curriculum vitae. The lawyer reviews it for form and procedure; the substance remains the engineer's.
5. Testimony and follow-upPreparing for the hearing, testifying, responding to opposing reports and to the court's questions, taking part in the meeting of experts or the settlement conference, through to the end of the proceedings.

V

What you receive

Documents designed for three readers: the client who decides, the lawyer who argues the case, and the judge who rules.

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