Source: Beazley, A&E Reporter, Volume 7, Issue 3 – Fall 2012
In a mixed result for design professionals, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana issued an amended final decision following a bench trial with respect to a breach of contract claim filed by a corporate hotel owner (“SAMS”) against an architectural design firm (“Environs”). SAMS Hotel Group, LLC v. Environs, Inc., 2012 WL 3139765 (S.D.Ind.).
SAMS retained Environs as its architectural design firm to provide services for a multi-story, steel frame hotel for a fee of $70,000. Pursuant to the contract, Environs agreed to provide architectural and engineering services and prepare construction documents including “all correspondence, drawing specifications and data” for the design of the hotel, and specifically the “structural drawings for steel framing system including design of specific structural members.” Notably, the sole officer and president of Environs was a licensed architect, but had served as the structural engineer for numerous hotel projects, despite the fact that he was not a licensed professional engineer.
SAMS hired a geotechnical engineer to do a subsurface evaluation of the site, who concluded that much of the native soil had to be replaced with compact fill prior to construction. Environs subsequently submitted its full set of completed, signed design drawings for approval. The drawings did not provide for a lateral shear wall system that would resist lateral loads because Environs thought the wall system would be designed by the contractor. In addition, Environs’ drawings did not provide guidance on how to comply with the geotechnical report, so the geotechnical recommendations were not followed.