(a) Help the owners by suggesting Code violations and provide a brief logic as to why each one sited from the Code may be a sound basis for legal action. (b) Discuss the applicability to this situation of the Engineer’s Code of Ethics. (c) Suggest other resources that may be of use to the owners as they ponder legal action.
After starting the wall and roof construction on a custom-designed home, FD, the prime contractor, realized he was not going to make the big profit that he had anticipated due to the many unique features of the home for which he had not correctly estimated the cost to the owners. The contract was fixed-price with no more than 10% override on the total cost.
As time proceeded, FD took the choices of the owners on appliances, finishing work on the floors and walls, and many other features and purchased look-alike substitutes from questionable-quality, internationally-based manufacturers and vendors.
After living in the house for only 3 years, the owners were so disappointed with the quality of work that they decided to bring a law suit against FD and his company for breach of contract. However, they needed sound reasons upon which to base their legal claims against FD, were the case to go to court. One of the owners, being an engineer, decided to consult the Code of Ethics for Engineers to gain insight into what may be substantial violations performed during the construction phase.
What will be an ideal response?
This problem can be used as a discussion topic for a team-based exercise in class.
(a) Most obvious are the violations of Canons number 4 and 5. Unfaithfulness to the client and deceptive acts are clearly present.
(b) The Code for Engineer’s is only partially useful to the owners in determining sound bases since the contractor is not an engineer. Much of the language of the Code is oriented toward representation, qualifications, etc., not specific acts of deceit and fraudulent behavior. Code sections may be somewhat difficult to interpret in construction
of a house.
(c) Probably a better source would be a Code for Contractor’s or consulting with a real estate attorney.
You might also like to view...
Answer the following statement(s) true (T) or false (F)
An argument is a set of statements intended to provide information about a situation, topic, or event.
Selection the option that research has NOT shown is occurring in family life. A. Studies have shown that the traditional arrangement where the mother is theprimary parent and the father is the primary breadwinner is not preferred toone where both tasks are more equally shared
B. Studies have shown that when both men and women share in parenting andbreadwinning more equally, their children will suffer adverse mental andemotional effects. C. Studies have shown that the partner who provides more income has more decision-making power, and the greater the difference in incomes, the more decision-making power the higher earning partner tends to have. D. Research has shown that couples with separate spheres of influence find that each partner does not share equal power within the family.
_________ was the Hellenistic city located only four miles from Jesus' home village of Nazareth and where Jesus perhaps acquired some knowledge of Greek ideas.
A. Jerusalem B. Galilee C. Sepphoris D. Alexandria
Calvin Coolidge apparently embraced the view that life is an investment when he said
A) ?"Time is money." B) ?"A penny saved is a penny earned." C) ?"Buy low, sell high." D) ? "The business of America is business."