Subconsultant Not Liable to Owner for Retaining Wall Failure

摘要

Subcontractors often retain design professionals to perform design and engineering work for that subcontractor's portion of a larger project. With such jobs, a low-fee project can result in a huge liability exposure in the event of a loss that could be attributed to professional malpractice. The engineers in Weseloh Family Limited Partnership versus K.L. Wessel Construction Company, Inc. faced such a situation, but the California Court of Appeals held that under the facts of that case, an engineer to a subcontractor did not owe a duty to either the owners or contractor on the project. In the absence of a duty, the engineers could not be held liable for the failure of a retaining wall they had a hand in designing.