Guide to Third-Party Reliance Updated

GBA Legal Affairs Committee

Developed by GBA’s Legal Affairs Committee, the GBA Guide to Third-Party Reliance provides comprehensive discussion of both authorized and unauthorized reliance and includes exhibits that contain sample materials firms can finalize with the assistance of qualified legal counsel. Contents include:

Third-Party Reliance Defined                               

• Who or what are third parties?
• What is authorized reliance?
• What is unauthorized reliance?

Dealing with Reliance Requests

• Should we charge a fee for third-party reliance?
• To whom should we grant reliance?
• How do we document a grant of reliance?
• Some clients ask us to include third-party reliance language in the report itself. How do we handle that?

Dealing with the Potential of Unauthorized Third-Party Reliance

• How can we protect ourselves when contractors use our reports to develop bids?
• Should we include advisory letters in our contracts and reports?
• What about communicating directly with contractors that are likely to use our reports?
• What happens when specifications require CoMET services?

Exhibits

The guide also includes 11 exhibits that contain sample materials firms can finalize with the assistance of qualified legal counsel. The exhibits include (but not limited to):

• Sample Letters Authorizing a Third Party to Rely on a Geotechnical-Engineering Report and GeoEnvironmental Report.
• Sample Contract Clauses about Document Use and Third-Party Reliance
• Sample CoMET Advisory Letter to a Contractor
• Sample Letter to Client about Contractors’ Use of Report for Bid Preparation
• Sample Cease-and-Desist Letter
• Sample Application for Authorization to Use

GBA Guide to Third-Party Reliance also includes an interactive table of contents and an interactive index.

Download GBA Guide to Third-Party Reliance: HERE