Codes of conduct and Board cases
Structural engineer confidentiality and client information
Updated
Both codes say the same thing in different words: a client's confidential information is not the engineer's to pass on without consent.
Ask about our job files Copyright is rarely the obstacle for a structural firm; client confidences are. Describe the job files and we will answer in writing about your own work.
The two codes
- NSPE Code, section III.4
- As the Board of Ethical Review states it, engineers have an obligation not to disclose, without consent, confidential information concerning the business affairs or technical processes of a present or former client or employer.
- IStructE Code of Conduct, section 3
- Members shall not disclose confidential information; the duty is owed to the client, and a member asked by a third party seeks and obtains the client's consent first.
Source: What a structural engineer may sell, by statute and code
How the Board has applied it
In the foundation design case the Board concluded it would not be ethical for the engineer to give a homeowner's report to another party's attorney unless compelled by a court or other legal authority, although the engineer had been paid in full. In the subpoena case it held that the duty of confidence gave way to a federal grand jury investigation, with which the engineer had an obligation to fully cooperate.
Sorting the job files
Reports on a named client's building, investigations and anything delivered under a confidentiality clause need the client's consent or stay out. Generic calculations, design methods and typical details the firm developed for itself are the usual starting point. Copyright in those is covered on structural calculations copyright.