Articles

Architectural barriers appear in a broad range of premises liability disputes. Compliance with the ADA and other relevant codes and standards frequently removes hazards from access routes like sidewalks and entrances, building interiors, restrooms, and other accommodations. How the ADA applies to a particular property may require a thorough evaluation.

In this article, Architect & Premises Safety Expert Mark Monteith provides insight to the Americans with Disabilities Act and the implications it has on premises liability disputes.

In this article we look at some of the important items that should be evaluated when getting started on a premises security case. Whether you’ve been retained on behalf of the plaintiff or defendant, understanding these issues can help to ensure your strategy aligns with the facts of your case.

Dog bites occasionally occur at kennels, shelters, veterinary clinics, and other venues that host canines outside of the home. This article discusses the standard of care for preventing dog bite incidents, including the training of personnel, proper enclosures and restraints, and the policies and procedures that are reasonable and prudent to be in place to provide a safe environment.

Construction guardrails used around elevated work surfaces are relatively simple systems, but are critical to worker safety on the job site. In this webinar, Structural Engineer, Mark Duckett, P.E. reviews the anatomy of a typical construction guardrail, the standards relevant to their construction, and some of the failure modes that are known to occur.

This presentation is intended for attorneys and insurance professionals involved in personal injury matters, to broaden their understanding of relevant safety standards and gain insight on the process for determining failure causation.

Parking lots are host to a variety of vehicle, pedestrian, operational, and construction activities, sometimes simultaneously. Facility owners and operators must inspect parking lots on the premises and address any aberrations that could cause an injury or damage.

In this article, Facilities Engineering Expert Christopher Fogarty shares the standard of care for parking lot operation and maintenance, drawing upon his experience managing a 183-acre, multi-use facility.

Schools that utilize the playground as an entry and exit location for student pick up and drop off face a number of security challenges due to the size, number of access points, pedestrian and foot traffic, and visibility obstructions in the environment. Even where fences and gates are used to provide a degree of physical security, those barriers are often easily circumvented and rely upon the watchful eye of trained supervisors and established safety protocols to ensure that unauthorized parties are not intruding, and that children are not leaving the property unattended.

In this article, School Administration Expert, Dr. Suzanne Rodriguez reviews the standard of care for school supervision when playgrounds are utilized as student pick-up and drop-off locations.

The most reliable indicator of driver impairment is an observation of a driver’s behavior behind the wheel, followed by an assessment performed by a qualified Drug Recognition Expert (DRE). Forensic analysis by a Drug Recognition Expert can be helpful in certain disputes toward validating assessments performed by field officers, establishing impairment at the time of an incident, or working with a toxicologist to determine impairment at specific times prior to an incident.

This article provides an overview of the standard of care for law enforcement to determine marijuana intoxication during traffic stops.

This article discusses the forensic process for determining if child services failed to protect children. Social Work expert Abigail Rich has investigated a variety of cases where children have sustained serious injuries or died while under the supervision of Child Protective Services.

Due to the physical properties of tempered glass, the failure of products featuring this material can result in a variety of serious injuries. In this webinar, ceramic scientist and failure analysis expert James Derby provides an introduction to the science of tempered glass, failure analysis methods, and an examination of the conditions that can cause it to explode.

The information is framed within the context of legal disputes, providing attorneys and insurance professionals with a foundation of technical knowledge. James brings the topic into focus by examining details from a tempered glass product common to our forensic casework: shower doors.

The use of restraints in an educational setting is considered a late-stage intervention, typically reserved for incidents where students have failed to respond to earlier de-escalation techniques and pose an imminent safety risk to themself or others. However, data suggests that the use of restraints has remained consistently high since 2009-2010 when school districts were first required to report restraints, and they are disproportionately used on students with disabilities.

In this article, special education and school administration expert, Dr. Theresa Kreider explains the intended use of restraints within the educational setting, where restraint use can go wrong, and some of the factors that should be considered when investigating these matters.

Sliding gate systems present a variety of hazards that can cause significant injury if not properly guarded and maintained. Whether motorized or manually-powered, these systems typically include heavy moving parts, pinch point hazards, and wear components that require periodic inspection and maintenance.

This article provides an introduction to the design and physics of cantilevered sliding gates. It also discusses known hazards and describes potential mechanisms of failure by revisiting the fact pattern from an actual case investigation. The experts at Robson Forensic have investigated a broad range of incidents involving physical security features, such as sliding gates, barrier arms, and overhead doors.

More than half of all traffic fatalities in the U.S. and Canada occur on rural roads, with ~2,700 of them (nearly 10%) at rural intersections. In this webinar, Highway Engineer & Intersection Design Expert, Gordon Meth, P.E. discusses the design issues that contribute to these incidents and the engineering solutions that are currently available.

The webinar covers relevant issues such as stopping sight distance, sign placement, and intersection detection. The content is delivered through the lens of litigation, positioning each topic within the context of legal disputes.

Floating docks can present a variety of slip, trip and fall hazards if they are not safely managed. It is best practice to use ramps and gangways to provide passage from the main dock to the floating dock, but stairs are sometimes used, which can create a trip/fall hazard.

In this article, Carl Wolf explains the marine industry standards and building code standards that apply to the use of stairs on floating docks through the lens of an actual case example.

In this article, Structural Engineer Anthony Volonnino, P.E., discusses excavation engineering, the common issues that arise with excavations in urban settings, and some of the failure points that we consider in our forensic investigations.

Security guards, cameras, and access control systems can enhance the level of security at a property, but provide no assurance of security on their own.

In this webinar, security expert John Hassard provides a holistic view of security as it relates to claims and litigation. The conversation focuses on physical security measures, while providing context on the role of policies and procedures and non-security personnel in maintaining a reasonably safe environment. The webinar includes three brief case examples where the adequacy of security was called to question at commercial properties.

A large segment of the truck driving population is composed of drivers who work locally and are home most nights. In this article, Commercial Trucking Expert Michael O’Dell explores the unique challenges that LTL delivery drivers regularly face.

LTL truck companies often employ drivers with diverse experiences and abilities, including over-the-road drivers, regional drivers, shuttle drivers, and local drivers. LTL, (Less than Truckload) drivers make multiple small deliveries and freight pickups within a local area. Because of the multi-stop nature of their deliveries, these drivers (especially if untrained or inexperienced) are at risk for vehicle accidents: injuries from unloading/loading and moving product from truck to truck; slips, trips, or falls in the ordinary course of work; and being struck by equipment while working in various shipping and receiving locations.

Bars, taverns, nightclubs, and restaurants have a responsibility to implement reasonable measures to provide a safe environment for guests and employees. A central task in many of our cases is to determine what constitutes reasonable security. This article explores that topic by evaluating a specific scenario involving a fight that starts inside a bar.

The failure of a product or system to turn on/off or respond to input can lead to a broad range of injuries or property damage. Whether it be a seemingly innocuous device like a coffeepot, or a heavy duty industrial cooling system, the root cause of a failure can often be traced to electrical controls.

So what are electrical controls, and how do they potentially factor into your casework?

This webinar simplifies the topic of electrical controls, starting with the basics and building up to examples of actual incidents caused by control failures. Experts from our electrical engineering group provide insight on evaluating these cases and guidance on discovery questions to ensure that adequate information is available for proper forensic analysis.