Published Sunday 2 August 2026 · By the JustEng team
Forensic engineering and construction disputes rarely make front pages, but the past fortnight has produced a run of significant developments — a first-of-its-kind cladding contribution ruling, two live structural investigations, and a prosecution that turned on temporary works. Here is what happened, and what each means for forensic engineer recruitment and expert witness hiring.
Court quantifies contractor contribution claim against cladding supplier
In Mulalley & Co Ltd v Sto Ltd [2026] EWHC 1552 (TCC), the High Court assessed for the first time how a contractor’s contribution claim against the supplier of a defective external wall system should be quantified. The court accepted the claimant’s expert evidence putting total costs incurred at £3,431,633.53, after deductions for preliminaries, subcontractor costs, and consultancy and legal fees.
Hiring angle: Judgments that turn this squarely on quantum evidence increase demand for forensic delay and quantum specialists who can withstand cross-examination — a niche where headhunting is almost always required rather than advertising.
Source: Mayer Brown
TCC refuses summary judgment in remediation agreement dispute
In Durkan Estates Ltd v Wallace Estates, Mr Justice Constable declined a freeholder’s application for reverse summary judgment following the purported termination of a building safety remediation agreement. The court noted the dispute was replete with detailed issues of factual and expert evidence, making it unsuitable for summary disposal.
Hiring angle: Remediation disputes going the distance means longer instructions and sustained candidate demand for building safety and facade experts across consultancies and claims practices.
Source: Mayer Brown
Wembley hotel cladding judgment sets a high bar for landlords
In Essendi UK Hotels 2 Ltd v London Property Company Ltd [2026] EWHC 1354 (TCC), handed down on 5 June following a two-week trial, the court found the defendant in breach of both a covenant to put and keep the exterior in good condition and a covenant to comply with legal obligations. The high-rise Wembley hotel was found to be clad in combustible ACM panels of the type used at Grenfell Tower.
Hiring angle: Extending remediation exposure into the commercial estate widens the client base instructing fire and facade investigators, and is already lifting fire engineer vacancies in disputes-facing teams.
Source: 4 Pump Court
Engineers investigate Florida assisted living roof collapse
Investigators are still working to establish the cause of a partial roof collapse at Aviata at Bradenton Villas in Florida, which forced around 157 residents to leave the facility. Construction crews were on the roof last week while engineers worked to identify what failed.
Hiring angle: Rapid-response structural investigation work of this kind is one of the clearest drivers of forensic engineering recruitment, and firms consistently under-resource it until an instruction lands.
Source: MySuncoast
Manhattan column buckling keeps investigators on site
Following the discovery of buckled structural columns on the 21st floor of an adaptive reuse project at 235 East 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, crews shored up the affected floors and New York City Department of Buildings inspectors and engineers remained on site. The building did not collapse, but the incident prompted multi-block evacuations and an ongoing investigation into the failure.
Hiring angle: Adaptive reuse and heavy refurbishment are producing a distinct class of structural failures, and employers are actively searching for structural engineer jobs candidates with existing-building assessment experience.
Source: Construction Dive
Director and company fined over temporary steel structure dismantling
Event structure company iSkate Limited and its director were sentenced at Guildford Magistrates’ Court on 28 July after a worker suffered life-changing injuries while dismantling a temporary steel structure in Leatherhead, Surrey. The company was fined £12,000 with £6,949 in costs; the director pleaded guilty to a Section 37 breach and received a community order with 75 hours of unpaid work.
Hiring angle: Enforcement focused on temporary works keeps demand high for temporary works coordinators and designers, and for investigators able to reconstruct a sequence of erection or dismantling after the event.
Source: HSE
JustEng is a specialist engineering recruitment agency headhunting forensic engineers, delay and quantum experts and expert witnesses for consultancies and disputes practices worldwide. Building a team? Register your vacancy. Considering a move into investigation work? Submit your CV, explore forensic engineering recruitment and benchmark your package with our forensic engineering salary guide.