Category: Professional Liability

Those in the architecture community often equate risk with professional liability. Because of state licensing laws and the general legal treatment of professionals, liability in the performance of professional services is a significant risk. When failure to meet the standard of care for professional services harms a project stakeholder or results in injury to the…

Be sure to register for these invaluable upcoming AIA Trust webinars on critical risk topics—free to AIA members. Retirement Risks & Reality September 16, 2021; 12PM–1PM ET Participants will learn ways to calculate future retirement needs, decisions to make when funding a firm’s retirement plan, how to select the appropriate retirement plan for one’s firm…

Do you know that when you design a building, you automatically own the copyright to not only your drawings and plans, but you also have a copyright to the design as well?     When you design a building, the copyright belongs to the person or persons who created the plans or design. Some project…

For more than 60 years, the Victor and CNA professional liability program has maintained a solid and stable base policy while introducing innovative expansions of coverage. Just as the design and construction industry has evolved, so has their policy. The CNA policy has now expanded the definition of the term insured in a significant way…

Most architects prefer to design the built environment rather than learn about legal concepts such as indemnification. While you should always engage your attorney to review contract language, this legal concept can significantly increase your risks on a project, especially if poorly written. An indemnification clause is your promise to cover the losses of the…

Federal, state, and local governments in the United States see Public-Private Partnerships (P3s) as a means to implement critical infrastructure improvements, such as improved public roads, highways, and bridges, and construct municipal improvements, such as courthouses, airports, and higher education residential facilities, when they have no immediate way to fund them. While benefits abound for…

In April 2018, the AIA Trust published The AIA Trust Guide to Marijuana Facilities Design which examines some of the necessary design considerations as well as the potential legal risks that a design professional may face in light of conflicting state and federal legal requirements. As these requirements continue to evolve, so do issues that…