Review and stamp a report 2

[JMick]

An environmental firm/client wants me to review and stamp a report for some site work that they have completed. I was not apart of the site work. My role is just to review and stamp the report. In my proposal I requested time to communicate with the regulatory agency. In their response, they are requesting that I have no direct contact with the agency, that all communication go through them. My question - is this type of request standard practice or should I consider it precautionary?

 

[GeoPaveTraffic]

Most state rules would forbid this type of activity. In all of the states where I'm regestered, to seal a report, you have to be "... in responsible charge..." of the work.

If you do what the client is asking you are very likely putting your license at risk. I would run, not walk, away from this project and the client.

 

[fattdad]

sounds fishy. If you assume the role of engineer in responsible charge and your audiance is a regulatory agency, you should have some line of communication (unless it's just so routine or such). For some "client" to say no communication with the agency sounds bad.

f-d

¡papá gordo ain’t no madre flaca!

 

[msquared48]

Raises all sorts of red flags to me too.

If you have written documentation to back up what you are saying here, I would preempt the situation and call the agency, relating what this client told you. If it is only word of mouth, I would not. Save all your correspondence, and remember that emails are considered legally admissable.
You obviouly do not have all the facts in your court that affect the outcome of this report. It has been manipulated.

Do try to stay away from the legal problem though, if you know what I mean.

It sounds to me like you do not need to work for this client anymore, AT THE LEAST. The risk is too great and the aspect of trust has been compromised.

OK... I'll get down now.

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[amb2002]

While I agree with the other comments that you should be careful in this situation, I would not necessarily agree that you might not be able to help your potential client without risking your license.

You could review the report and indicate in your disclaimer that you were not present at the time of construction and that the construction methods presented in the report would meet applicable review agency requirements and standard construction practices _IF_ it was followed.

Similarly, there may be some items that you could inspect in the field and include that info in the report.

Obviously you cannot verify everything, but if you make a clear statement as to what portions you have reviewed and verified and are attesting to by your signature and seal, you should be able to protect your license.

If the client is not receptive to you disclaiming portions you cannot verify, obviously you cannot safely proceed.

The communication issue is a little odd, but I can possibly understand a valid reason for them not wanting you to contact the regulatory agency as part of your work. It has been my experience that reviewers tend to jump to a worst case scenario mindset when you approach them with questions, possibly complicating something that should be more straight forward.

Anyway, I don’t know all of the specifics of this project and it could just be all crap. I cannot believe how many times I have seen engineers or surveyors sign something that seemed questionable to me, but if you are specific about what your role in the project is by written disclaimers on your signed and sealed documents, you should be able to proceed with it.

 

[cvg]

I believe the board rules are clear, you probably cannot stamp the original report. As you can see from the attached rules below for Arizona, it is clear that the registrant or his employee must have prepared a document that is being sealed.

Arizona:

A registrant shall place a permanently legible imprint of the registrant's seal and signature on the following:

... Either the cover, title, index, or table of contents page, or first sheet of any report, specification, or other professional document prepared by a registrant or the registrant's bona fide employee;

The signature line of any letter or other professional document prepared by a registrant, or the registrant's bona fide employee...

California:

(g) (1) All professional engineering plans, specifications, reports, or documents (hereinafter referred to as “documents”) shall be signed and sealed in accordance with the requirements of the Professional Engineers Act and any other laws related to the practice of professional engineering and shall be signed and sealed in a manner such that all work can be clearly attributed to the licensee(s) in responsible charge of the work.

 

[dgillette]

If I needed the work, my inclination would be to offer them a distinctly separate report at arm's length. I'd be nervous about being set up as a potential fall guy to do anything else.

Dear Mr. Dude,

The following letter report describes my independent review of your report entitled "How I Cleaned Up America's Haz Waste Problems," along with the following supporting documentation:

Design summary report and drawings numbered...
Laboratory data including...
Inspectors daily reports
Verbal discussions with yourself and your staff on June 31, 2017, occurring at O'Malley's Tavern, Paramus NJ, facilitated by Mr. Guinness and Mr. Bushmill.

My report is based solely upon the documentation with which I was provided, and I was not present during construction or the laboratory testing.

 

[msquared48]

WHOA NELLIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You are also getting into the very sticky realm of stamping something that you have not directly supervised - something that can put your license in jeopardy in many states. And that is a big, big

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[BigH]

and don't forget if you are reviewing someone's report, you typically have an obligation to advise them that you are doing so.