Risk Management Tools for You & Your Firm

Architects confront risks daily – at many levels. From working with employees and maintaining your own office space to working with clients and contractors on job sites – along with all the regulatory and legislative requirements that frequently change – the risks are real and substantial.

In its role as a risk management resource for members, the AIA Trust works with a wide variety of important participants in the risk management arena. Often, the result of these working relationships is reports and resources on vital topics of interest to AIA Members—ranging from the annual survey of the professional liability insurance industry to white papers on vital topics of architectural practice. Read more »

New Project-Based IPD Insurance Coverage is Available

The shared-risk/shared-profit collaborative nature of Integrated Project Delivery results in many aspects of the relationship being defined contractually. But it is unclear how courts will construe the provisions of multi-party agreements with extensive waivers of rights, unusual limitations on risk, and blurring of responsibilities. The delivery system, with its emphasis on contractual liability rather than negligence liability, means that case law proves of little value. With so many unknowns in the legal treatment of collaboration in design and construction, the insurance coverage options are difficult to define and price. Read more »

Lender Assignment and Certification Requirements

In today’s economic climate, more and more, architects are being asked to address client issues relative to financing, assignment and certification.  Every architect should be knowledgeable on these issues and approaches. Read more »

Protecting Your Firm When Going Green

In order to protect your firm, contractual provisions such as disclaimers and other exculpatory language need to be carefully worded.  Firms should assess the risk of project-specific provisions and work with local legal counsel to craft them appropriately.  This is especially true when the provisions include any waiver of claims, requirements for a legal defense, or the indemnification of costs. Read more »

To Shred or Not to Shred

Every firm has documents that should be destroyed, not simply discarded. Documents must be destroyed because firms need to maintain confidentiality when dealing with employee, client or business records that contain personal or proprietary information. Furthermore, firms need to develop a formal document destruction policy that includes a schedule that is adhered to consistently. Read more »