Legal
Converse provides support to numerous legal firms for technical support to council or expert testimony. Each of our service areas (Geotechnical engineering, Construction Material Testing, Water Resources, Environmental Sciences, and Occupational and Environmental Health Services) may be called up on to provide expert opinions to support our clients legal position. For example, many issues (e.g., risk-based corrective action, contaminant transport modeling, design of constructed features, etc.) may hinge upon numerical modeling and assessment, in which case Converse personnel can provide oversight or validation of numerical methods. In some cases, environmental remediation may involve a proposal for “equivalency” with regulations or policy, in which case technical expertise and communications skills will facilitate objective solutions. When a constructed feature fails, litigation that addresses failure mechanisms and appropriateness of design, operation, and/or maintenance may result.
Converse's highly-skilled personnel can assist in legal matters, whether by providing technical support to counsel or by providing expert witness testimony.
Sinkhole Causation Litigation
Confidential Client, Pennsylvania.
A sinkhole developed in a residential subdivision at a leaking water line. Extensive damage occurred to the property of an adjacent homeowner. Converse provided expert analysis of the sinkhole collapse incident for the plaintiff and assisted in defeating a defense motion to dismiss. Case settled prior to trial.
Permit Appeal
Confidential Client, Pennsylvania
The issuance of a permit by the State regulatory agency was appealed by a citizen's group over impacts upon groundwater and adequacy of stormwater feature design in a karst area. A Converse Principal Hydrogeologist was seated as an expert witness before the State Environmental Hearing Board (EHB) on behalf of the plaintiff and presented testimony regarding hydrologic and hydrogeologic issues. The case was successfully adjudicated by the EHB and resolved without appeal.
Phase I Site Assessment
Confidential Client, Las Vegas
A law firm sought our support in defending their environmental clients Phase I against allegations that they did not meet the ASTM standard. Because one of Converse’s VP is on the ASTM committee that developed the standard, we were able to provide our client with appropriate information to defend their client.
PCE Remediation
Confidential Client, Las Vegas
Our client was the owner of a strip mall and became the responsible party to remediate PCE from dry cleaner operations that impacted groundwater as a result of several prior tenants operations. Our client, through their attorney, utilized us as an expert to help determine the timing of the releases and to recover money from the former tenants for operation.
Mold Mitigation
Confidential Client, Las Vegas
Our client, through their attorney, utilized the services of our CIH to help establish mold conditions and factors contributing to mold to defend their position.
