Commercial Building Surveying Expert Witness (Defects) — UK-wide

📍 UK-wide, hybrid   💷 £65,000–£95,000 DOE + car allowance and performance bonus   ⚖ Expert witness training provided

JustEng is recruiting an experienced Commercial Building Surveyor into the expert witness team of a major UK multidisciplinary built environment consultancy that delivers thousands of projects a year across the country.

This is a defects role at the sharp end. You will investigate what went wrong on commercial buildings, establish why, and produce the technical evidence that decides the dispute. It suits a chartered surveyor with a genuinely practical construction background — someone who has spent years diagnosing and rectifying defects and now wants that expertise to count as opinion evidence rather than remedial advice.

Full training into expert witness work is provided, and you would work under the direction of established experts while you build your own practice.

What you will be doing

• Undertaking detailed site investigations into building defects across commercial property
• Working as part of a wider team, under the direction of experienced expert witnesses
• Writing reports — the core output, and the thing your reputation will rest on
• Meeting clients at site to discuss and explain technical findings
• Business development: identifying and developing opportunities as your profile grows
• Travelling nationally to client sites

What you will need

• A minimum of 15 years’ professional experience in defects analysis and rectification
• Chartered Building Surveyor or Chartered Builder, with a strong practical construction background
• Sound working knowledge of past and current industry standards, regulations and guidance — historic standards matter as much as current ones in defects work
• Experience of JCT and NEC forms of contract
• A focused, confident decision-maker who will commit to a position and defend it
• Strong problem-solving ability, and the capacity to assimilate large volumes of technical information quickly
• The ability to communicate complex technical matters to non-technical audiences, in writing and in person
• Strong interpersonal skills, and a willingness to take instruction
• A flexible approach, able to work under pressure and to strict deadlines
• Flexibility to travel nationally

Prior expert witness experience is not required — training is provided. What is required is the 15 years of defects experience underneath it.

Why this is worth a look

• Defects experience becomes an asset rather than a service line. In expert witness work you are paid for your opinion and your ability to defend it, not for chargeable remedial hours.
• Structured route in. You work under established experts with formal training rather than being handed a CPR Part 35 instruction and left to it.
• Counter-cyclical. Claims and defect disputes continue, and often increase, when new-build slows.
• You build a personal professional reputation. Reports carry your name, and that name travels with you.
• National caseload with hybrid working, and more predictable workload patterns than project-side surveying.

What’s on offer

• £65,000–£95,000 depending on experience
• Car allowance
• Performance bonus
• 25 days’ annual leave, with options to buy, sell or carry over
• Three volunteering days a year
• Pension, life assurance and income protection
• Medical insurance, private GP access and gym discounts
• Mental health support, including trained Mental Health First Aiders
• Hybrid working
• A defined career development pathway, with training into expert witness practice

How to apply

To register your interest or arrange a confidential conversation, submit your CV here or contact JustEng directly. All approaches are handled in strict confidence.