Contract Corner with XL Catlin

Elevating the Standard of Care

The law requires design professionals to perform in accordance with the “standard of care,” which is defined by the Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee (EJCDC) as “the care and skill ordinarily used by members of the designer’s profession practicing under similar circumstances at the same time and in the same locality.”

Many owner-drafted agreements recite the accepted standard of care, but add all sorts of inappropriate requirements to it.

Here are a few suggestions for countering your clients’ attempts at raising the standard of care and increasing your liability.

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