An architect is required to design a project that is feasible!
In order to build their home, a couple (acting as the project owners) commissioned an architect to prepare the preliminary designs, compile the building permit application, and solicit bids from contractors through a competitive bidding process. The architect then advised them to conduct a soil study, a step that was ultimately not taken.
Once the house was completed, cracks appeared on the facade due to the failure to account for soil conditions.
The judges, however, exonerated the architect, noting that his scope of work had been essentially limited to the building permit.
Upon review of the dispute, the Court of Cassation overturned this decision. It reiterated that, unless it can be proven that the damage stems from an external cause, any builder of a structure is automatically liable for damage that compromises the structural integrity of the structure or that, by affecting one of its constituent elements or one of its components, renders it unfit for its intended purpose.
Thus, simply informing the project owner of the need to conduct a soil study is not sufficient to exempt the architect from liability!
