#5 - Case History - If the Bus Driver Doesn't Have a License, Get Off the Bus

About this episode

This episode discusses a case history involving a geotechnical study for a church's retirement home project and the subsequent legal issues that arose.

GBA Case History Series – Case History #5 - If the Bus Driver Doesn't Have a License, Get Off the Bus Summary An architect for a church retained a GBA member firm to perform a limited-scope geotechnical study for a federally funded retirement home. Only boring logs and a brief letter report to the structural engineer were needed for the design of a pile foundation. Unfortunately, the design was not within the budget and the structural engineer refused to change the design and withdrew from the project. The replacement structural engineer redesigned the foundations and satisfactory load tests were performed but the federal agency balked until a geotechnical study was provided for the revision. A new geotech was retained but after the agency reviewed their report, the agency directed that a mat foundation be used. The church filed suit against the original member firm for the new costs. Our Hosts: Elizabeth Brown, PE - Principal Geotechnical Engineer/ JLT Consultants Elizabeth is the Principal Geotechnical Engineer at JLT Consultants in Boise, Idaho. Elizabeth has performed and/or assisted with numerous geotechnical investigations throughout Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming…

People in this episode

Hosts: Elizabeth Brown, Abi Corbett

Topics covered

• geotechnical engineering
• construction
• legal issues
• project management
• foundation design

Keywords

• geotechnical study
• foundation design
• construction issues
• legal case
• project management

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: GBA, JLT Consultants, SME

Places: Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming

More episodes of GBA Podcast

• Geoprofessional Women's Group · June 2, 2026 · 1h 10m
• First Word - June 2026 · June 1, 2026 · 4 min
• Communication Basics: Intentional and Inclusive Communication · May 5, 2026 · 33 min
• First Word - May 2026 · May 2, 2026 · 8 min
• #4 - Case History - Compromise Must be a Part of Your Business Strategy · April 28, 2026 · 16 min
• #3 - Case History - If Your Client Won't Listen...Get Out Your Checkbook · April 21, 2026 · 19 min