Role Description: Geotechnical Engineer

The purpose of this exercise is to negotiate a settlement to the dispute in Case VI from Chen (1988).  You may make the following assumptions:

• The case is in mediation.
• The state of Colorado spent $850,000 to correct surface drainage problems around the facility and to repair interior walls and floors damages by swelling soils.
• The contractor has already made a settlement with the state of Colorado.  No details of that settlement are known.

Your role is to protect the interests of your company.  You are mostly concerned about the reputation of your company but cost is still a significant issue.  The legal cost of defending yourself has already cost you three times what you were paid by the state for the work you performed on this project.  You believe your recommendations were correct and clear and you did nothing wrong.  You think the root of the problem lies with the owner who wanted a Mercedes at a Nissan price and was too stupid and cheap to follow your original recommendation to locate the school in a different area or use a structural floor with an air gap between the floor and the expansive soil.  In spite of the fact that you know you’re right, you realize that you have an incentive to settle the dispute during mediation.  If this goes to court it will only increase your losses on this project.  You want to settle this dispute and maintain your firm’s good reputation at the same time. 

Preparation

In order to prepare for the negotiation prepare a list of facts for and against each of the three parties in the mediation.  

1. Owner
2. Architect
3. Geotechnical Engineer

Submission

Provide your lists of facts for and against each party in a single .pdf or .docx file format.  Make sure you have access to this file when we meet as this will be helpful to you as you try to come to a resolution.