Judge rules California design company will remain a co-defendan...

And people wonder why we ship jobs overseas? Between OSHA, the EPA, the EEOC, and the Trial Lawyers Association, it's a wonder anyone would want to start a new company in this country. Maybe the state can go back to the original inventor of steel and see if he has any living relatives they can sue?

If the design person and/or firm violated the design criteria at the time the plans were sealed, resulting in gusset plates being too thin: they are at least partially responsible.

If the contractor exceeded the legal load for vehicles on a “road or a structure”(even for temporary construction loads – these loads often control member sizing): they are at least partially responsible.

If there was a crack noted in a previous inspection report on a fracture critical member: and the inspector didn’t highlight it to the structure’s owner; and the owner didn’t prevent the collapse armed with that information: they are at least partially responsible.

How long are we going to hold a company liable? That bridge was designed and built almost 50 years before it collapsed. Is the judge saying that a design flaw took 50 years to manifest itself? Allowing Jacobs to be sued for the negligence of the State is like someone suing the company that built their car when it falls apart from rust after 20 years of driving. Everything has a useful lifespan and the State should have inspected and maintained its bridge better. What happened to the vistims was horrible, but lets not create more victims. The State is the culprit here not Jacobs, URS, or Progressive.