Architect’s Liability on Supervision

The Architect's duty with regard to supervision has been a subject of a number of court cases. One of the closest to our context is a Singapore case: Sim and Associates v Alfred Tan (1997) where the architect was sued for, among others, certifying defective works.

The court held that an architect is only required to give reasonable supervision. That is the general rule in the absence of specific requirements in the conditions of appointment. The fact that the work is certified which turns out to be defective does not by itself mean that the architect has been negligent.

Failure to proof the consultant's negligence would render the contractor responsible for work not in accordance with the contract.