A Contractor Can Directly Sue a Design Professional for Damages Suffered by the Contractor as a Result of Defects in the Design Professional’s Work
In both Pennsylvania and West Virginia, a design professional impliedly warrants to a contractor that its plans and specifications have been prepared with ordinary care, skill and diligence. A design professional owes a duty of care to the contractor as a design professional and can forsee that a contractor preparing a bid on a project would rely on the design professional’s design documents. Bilt-Rite Contractors v. The Architectural Studio, 866 A. 2d 270 (Pa. 2005); Eastern Steel Contractors v. City of Salem, 549 S.E. 2d 266 (W. Va. 2001)