With sadness, The New York State Society of Professional Engineers (NYSSPE) has learned of the passing of Dolph Rotfeld, PE, F.NPSE at the age of 91.  Dolph served as NYSSPE’s State President 1979 to 1980. He also served as President of the Westchester/Putnam Chapter.  He was awarded the 1976  Meritorious Service Award and received NSPE Fellow Membership in 2004.Dolph was the Principal Owner of Dolph Rotfeld Engineering, established in 1979 and now a Division of Al Engineers, Inc., P.C. providing consulting services to several municipal clients, including the City of New Rochelle, the Villages of Ardsley, Elmsford, Pelham, Rye Brook; the Towns of New Castle, North Castle, Harrison, Greenburgh, Eastchester; Westchester Joint Water Works and Westchester County.  The firm also currently serves as Village Engineer for Mount Kisco, Port Chester, Pelham Manor, Sleepy Hollow and as Town Engineer for the Town of Mamaroneck.

OPEN SCHOLARSHIPS FOR NYSSPE STUDENT MEMBERS – APPLY BY APRIL 1^ST 2022

Applications for the 2022 scholarships are now available to NYSSPE student members via a new online submission platform that streamlines the application process. Current engineering students can now apply for the following scholarships by April 1:

• The Maureen L. and Howard N. Blitman, P.E., Scholarship to Promote Diversity in Engineering is awarded annually to a high school senior from an ethnic minority who has been accepted into an ABET-accredited engineering program. The award is $5,000.
• The Auxiliary Legacy Scholarship is awarded annually to a female undergraduate entering or continuing their junior year of a four-year ABET-accredited engineering program. The scholarship is awarded in one disbursement of $5,000 at the beginning of the junior year. Multiple awards are potentially available.
• The Steinman Scholarship is awarded annually to undergraduates entering or continuing their junior year in a four-year ABET-accredited engineering program. This award is for $5000, with multiple awards potentially available.
• The George B. Hightower, P.E. Fellowship is awarded annually to a current engineering undergraduate or graduate student who is enrolled in, or graduated from, an ABET-accredited engineering program. The scholarship is awarded in one disbursement of $3,000 at the beginning of the Fall semester.
• Coming soon! The Swadesh and Om P. Popli, P.E., P.L.S. Scholarship will be a multi-year award, providing $5,000 each year for a recipient’s four-year education. Applicants must be a female high school senior from an ethnic minority pursuing an engineering degree at an ABET-accredited program.

  

Career Opportunity

NYSSPE has learned that the New York State Education Department will shortly be conducting a search for a Professional Engineer (or other qualified design professional) to serve as Executive Secretary to the State Board for Professional Engineering, Land Surveying and Geology. With respect to the licensed professions, the Department’s primary charge is the protection of the health, safety and welfare of the public.  We’re spreading the word about the forthcoming opening in the hopes that someone with an interest in protecting the P.E. license (as well as licensure in related fields), might be interested in the position.  If you want to learn more, it is recommended that you periodically visit the NYS Education Department website: http://www.nysed.gov/hr/employment/employment-opportunities in the weeks and months ahead.

Once available the job posting will provide details regarding the scope of responsibilities and provide guidance respecting the application process.  Further, NYSSPE’s Legislative Counsel, Mark Kriss, can provide a perspective regarding this opportunity.  He can be reached by phone at (518) 449-2037 (x207). The position falls in the Management Confidential classification.  The Secretary is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the Board of Regents.  Historically, the salary for this position has been based on the candidate’s experience.

Note: NYSSPE facilitates posting on this blog, but the views and accounts expressed herein are those of the author(s) and not the views or accounts of NYSSPE, its officers or directors whose views and accounts may or may not be similar or identical. NYSSPE, its officers and directors do not express any opinion regarding any product or service by virtue of reference to such product or service in this blog.

The following article describes the difference between a Statute of Repose and a Statute of Limitations and the distinct treatment of claims by Project Owners versus Third Parties (Occupants, Visitors and Adjacent Property Owners).

New York State stands out from virtually all of the other 49 states for some laudatory reasons. It is home to Wall Street, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Broadway theaters, and many elite institutions of higher education.  It is home to the New York Yankees.  Unfortunately, for the design community, including professional engineers and architects, New York also stands out as one of only two states (the other is Vermont) with no true Statute of Repose for claims alleging faulty design.

The absence of a Statute of Repose gives rise to the possibility that design professionals may be held responsible for personal injury, death and property damage arising decades after they have completed their work on a project. NYSSPE, AIA and others in the design community continue to advocate for adoption of a ten-year Statute of Repose in New York, but relentlessly face the strong opposition from plaintiff trial lawyers.  The purpose of this article is to clarify the nature of the additional risk in New York arising from the absence of a Statute of Repose versus virtually every other state, and also reiterate the availability of proactive alternatives to mitigate this additional risk.

It is important to recognize that in all design liability cases New York does have a Statute of Limitations (to be distinguished from a Statute of Repose) which offers protection against claims for design defects, particularly those property damage claims asserted by a project owner who has hired the licensee to provide design services. In short, an owner, contracting for design services for a building or other project,  is generally subject to a three-year statute of limitations when asserting a claim against a PE or RA for such services*. The three-year Statute of Limitations period runs from when a project is completed.  Essentially this class of cases include claims by a project’s owner for property damage to the building or other structure which was constructed based upon the licensee’s design.

(*The three-year Statute of Limitations can be extended to six years in a very narrow class of cases where the design professional assumes a duty above and beyond the standard of care otherwise applicable to professional design service contracts.)

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the absence of a Statute of Repose in New York creates potential significant liabilities for claims by third-parties, including building occupants, visitors and adjacent property owners. While the three-year Statute of Limitations also applies to these third-party claims, the limitation period, in this class of cases, does not begin to run until the third-party is injured or killed or the third-party’s property is damaged or destroyed. The commencement of this clock, (i.e. the date of the injury, death or damage or destruction of property belonging to third party), is dramatically different from the trigger that applies to the project owner who contracted for the delivery of the project design.  As stated above, the Statute of Limitations’ clock, in the case of a project owner, starts to run upon completion of the project.  Accordingly, it is the third-party class of cases which creates the most significant additional risk for projects located in New York.

In order to guard against claims long after services are rendered engineers can purchase tail coverage from their design liability insurance carrier upon their retirement. Tail coverage may be particularly useful in cases where an engineering firm is being dissolved. Unfortunately, tail coverage is usually limited to three years.  In most cases where the firm continues, including cases of merger or acquisition, insurance coverage can continue and be extended to retired licensees indefinitely.  In cases of merger or acquisition, retiring licensees should be careful to expressly include favorable indemnification language and insurance coverage provisions in the merger or acquisition agreement.   However, in all cases, with proper planning, licensees can also protect their assets through the use of a trust, without loss of control over the assets placed in trust by the licensee.

Please feel free to direct any questions regarding the use of a trust, or any other issues raised in this article, to NYSSPE counsel Mark Kriss who can be reached at mkriss@krisslaw.com or calling 518-449-2037 extension 207.

__________________________________________________________________

Note: NYSSPE facilitates posting on this blog, but the views and accounts expressed herein are those of the author(s) and not the views or accounts of NYSSPE, its officers or directors whose views and accounts may or may not be similar or identical. NYSSPE, its officers and directors do not express any opinion regarding any product or service by virtue of reference to such product or service in this blog.