American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)

Committee on Forensic Practices (CFP)

Background

Forensic Engineers are engaged to investigate the failures of engineered facilities and to report and provide expert testimony in order to aid the trier of fact in understanding the cause and liability for the failure. Because of the adversarial nature of most failure investigations, Forensic Engineers may find themselves being pressured to champion their client's position rather than serving as an impartial purveyor of technical facts. Yielding to this pressure may lead to inappropriate occurrences of advocacy, practicing outside one's competence, manipulation of facts, crafted testimony, inadequate or defective investigations, misrepresentation of standards of practice, or other ethical violations.

In 1985, the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering of the American Society of Civil Engineers chartered the Forensic Practices Committee with its mission. With the need for Forensic Engineers to remain unbiased and to carry out their duties in an ethical manner, the committee was tasked with creating a set of fundamental guidelines. Those guidelines were published by ASCE in 2003 as the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice.

Leadership

The Forensic Practices Committee consists of seven Control Group persons and 18 other members. The Control Group consists of not less than three or more than ten members. It has continuing committee administrative responsibility. Personnel are nominated by the committee chair and approved by the Executive Committee of the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering and must be Society members. The Control Group of the Forensic Practices Committee consists of the following persons (listed in alphabetical order):

Anthony M. Dolhon, PE, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., Princeton Junction, New Jersey

Derrick S. Hancock, PE, HDR Engineering, Inc., Houston, Texas, (Committee Chair)

Gary L. Lewis, PhD, PE, Parsons Corporation, Denver, Colorado

Leonard J. Morse-Fortier, PhD, PE, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts

Robert T. Ratay, PhD, PE, Robert T. Ratay Consulting Engineer, Inc., Manhasset, New York

Clemens J. Rossell, PE, Exterior Research & Design, Seattle, Washington

Lloyd M. Sonenthal, PE, Esq., Lloyd M. Sonenthal, Ltd., Chicago, Illinois

Projects in Progress

Call for Updates to the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice, Target Completion Date 2008

In October 2005, the Executive Committee of the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering tasked the Forensic Practices Committee to update the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice and to publish a second edition with a target completion date of 2008, thereby putting the guidelines into a five-year publication cycle.

To accomplish this task assignment, the Control Group of the Committee solicits input from its membership in a Call for Chapter Revisions and Additions. Each member is invited to contribute to a Task Group(s) on either updating an existing chapter or proposing a new chapter.

Presentations are planned for pre-Congress sessions at future Forensic Engineering Congresses, the Forensic Engineering Track of the SEI Congresses, and other venues. For more information, click here.

Projects Completed

Forensic Engineering Practice Workshop, October 6, 2006

This day-long competency and ethics workshop on Forensic Engineering was presented at the Fourth Forensic Engineering Congress sponsored by the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering, at Cleveland State University on October 6, 2006. The objective of this seminar was to present a practical guide to enhance the competent and ethical practice of Forensic Engineering.

Competency Seminar in Forensic Engineering Practice, June 16, 2005

This half-day competency seminar in Forensic Engineering was presented to the Expert Witness Certification Committee of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado on June 16, 2005. Like its earlier companion seminar on ethics, the competency seminar was based upon the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice and presented in four one-hour presentations. It was attended by approximately 60 registrants of ACEC and ASCE in Colorado. It was held at the Lakewood Country Club in Lakewood, Colorado.

Ethics Seminar in Forensic Engineering Practice, November 18, 2004

This half-day ethics seminar in Forensic Engineering was presented to the Expert Witness Certification Committee of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado on November 18, 2004. This seminar was based upon the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice and presented in four one-hour presentations. The seminar was attended by approximately 90-95 registrants of ACEC and ASCE in Colorado. It was held at the Lakewood Country Club in Lakewood, Colorado.

Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice, Gary L. Lewis, PhD, PE, ed., 2003

After the committee was chartered, its first task was to create the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice. In 1994, work was initiated on the guidelines and after years in development, final approval for the publication was given on August 21, 2003 by the Executive Committee of the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering. The guidelines were published in 2003. The guidelines present the state of practice on the qualifications, investigation, ethics, legal, and business matters pertaining to Forensic Engineering.



	Committees Journal TCFE Awards Upcoming Events TCFE member eRoom TCFE Home TAC Home ASCE Home Technical Council on Forensic Engineering (TCFE) Committee on Forensic Practices (CFP) Background Forensic Engineers are engaged to investigate the failures of engineered facilities and to report and provide expert testimony in order to aid the trier of fact in understanding the cause and liability for the failure. Because of the adversarial nature of most failure investigations, Forensic Engineers may find themselves being pressured to champion their client's position rather than serving as an impartial purveyor of technical facts. Yielding to this pressure may lead to inappropriate occurrences of advocacy, practicing outside one's competence, manipulation of facts, crafted testimony, inadequate or defective investigations, misrepresentation of standards of practice, or other ethical violations. In 1985, the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering of the American Society of Civil Engineers chartered the Forensic Practices Committee with its mission. With the need for Forensic Engineers to remain unbiased and to carry out their duties in an ethical manner, the committee was tasked with creating a set of fundamental guidelines. Those guidelines were published by ASCE in 2003 as the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice. Leadership The Forensic Practices Committee consists of seven Control Group persons and 18 other members. The Control Group consists of not less than three or more than ten members. It has continuing committee administrative responsibility. Personnel are nominated by the committee chair and approved by the Executive Committee of the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering and must be Society members. The Control Group of the Forensic Practices Committee consists of the following persons (listed in alphabetical order): Anthony M. Dolhon, PE, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., Princeton Junction, New Jersey Derrick S. Hancock, PE, HDR Engineering, Inc., Houston, Texas, (Committee Chair) Gary L. Lewis, PhD, PE, Parsons Corporation, Denver, Colorado Leonard J. Morse-Fortier, PhD, PE, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts Robert T. Ratay, PhD, PE, Robert T. Ratay Consulting Engineer, Inc., Manhasset, New York Clemens J. Rossell, PE, Exterior Research & Design, Seattle, Washington Lloyd M. Sonenthal, PE, Esq., Lloyd M. Sonenthal, Ltd., Chicago, Illinois Projects in Progress Call for Updates to the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice, Target Completion Date 2008 In October 2005, the Executive Committee of the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering tasked the Forensic Practices Committee to update the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice and to publish a second edition with a target completion date of 2008, thereby putting the guidelines into a five-year publication cycle. To accomplish this task assignment, the Control Group of the Committee solicits input from its membership in a Call for Chapter Revisions and Additions. Each member is invited to contribute to a Task Group(s) on either updating an existing chapter or proposing a new chapter. Presentations are planned for pre-Congress sessions at future Forensic Engineering Congresses, the Forensic Engineering Track of the SEI Congresses, and other venues. For more information, click here. Projects Completed Forensic Engineering Practice Workshop, October 6, 2006 This day-long competency and ethics workshop on Forensic Engineering was presented at the Fourth Forensic Engineering Congress sponsored by the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering, at Cleveland State University on October 6, 2006. The objective of this seminar was to present a practical guide to enhance the competent and ethical practice of Forensic Engineering. Competency Seminar in Forensic Engineering Practice, June 16, 2005 This half-day competency seminar in Forensic Engineering was presented to the Expert Witness Certification Committee of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado on June 16, 2005. Like its earlier companion seminar on ethics, the competency seminar was based upon the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice and presented in four one-hour presentations. It was attended by approximately 60 registrants of ACEC and ASCE in Colorado. It was held at the Lakewood Country Club in Lakewood, Colorado. Ethics Seminar in Forensic Engineering Practice, November 18, 2004 This half-day ethics seminar in Forensic Engineering was presented to the Expert Witness Certification Committee of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Colorado on November 18, 2004. This seminar was based upon the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice and presented in four one-hour presentations. The seminar was attended by approximately 90-95 registrants of ACEC and ASCE in Colorado. It was held at the Lakewood Country Club in Lakewood, Colorado. Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice, Gary L. Lewis, PhD, PE, ed., 2003 After the committee was chartered, its first task was to create the Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice. In 1994, work was initiated on the guidelines and after years in development, final approval for the publication was given on August 21, 2003 by the Executive Committee of the Technical Council on Forensic Engineering. The guidelines were published in 2003. The guidelines present the state of practice on the qualifications, investigation, ethics, legal, and business matters pertaining to Forensic Engineering.
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Technical Council on Forensic Engineering (TCFE)