Engineering Firm Prevails in Arbitration Proceeding Over Retaining Wall Design.

The defense prevailed in an arbitration proceeding on behalf of an engineering firm that had designed a 30-foot-high segmented retaining wall at a craft brewery in Pittsburgh. During construction, the supplier of the blocks used to construct the wall raised issues with the engineer’s design. The project owner, block supplier, and general contractor jointly retained another engineer to review the original design, and it was alleged the original design was faulty in several respects. Our client refuted the criticisms of his design, but agreed to redesign the wall. The wall was torn down and rebuilt with product obtained from another supplier. Litigation ensued after completion to recover additional costs incurred by all parties. The arbitration panel unanimously ruled in favor of the engineer and denied all claims and cross claims against our client.