Vident Partners provides vetted safety engineering expert witnesses for cases involving OSHA standard violations, workplace accident investigation, machine guarding deficiencies, warning label adequacy, and industrial safety program design and compliance failures. Request a referral today.
Find a Safety Engineering Expert →Overview
Safety engineering experts evaluate workplace safety programs, equipment safeguards, and regulatory compliance. They are essential in OSHA citation cases, workplace accident litigation, and product liability claims involving inadequate safety features or warnings. Section 5 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act imposes a General Duty on employers to furnish a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm, and to comply with all applicable OSHA standards 1. When a specific OSHA standard governs the hazard at issue, the standard defines the minimum required safeguard; when no specific standard applies, the General Duty Clause and industry-recognized best practices fill the gap 1. The Certified Safety Professional (CSP) credential, issued by the Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP), is the premier professional credential in safety, health, and environmental practice, requiring at minimum a bachelor's degree, four years of safety experience, and passage of a comprehensive examination 2. Safety engineers assess machine guarding adequacy, lockout/tagout compliance, fall protection, hazard communication, and written safety program content against OSHA standards and ANSI/ASSP consensus standards. They reconstruct accident sequences, identify failed controls, and opine on feasible alternative safeguards that would have prevented the injury. These experts are often retained alongside mechanical engineers and forensic engineers to provide a comprehensive analysis of both the equipment deficiency and the safety management failure that allowed the hazardous condition to persist.
OSHA Section 5 requires every employer to furnish a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm, and to comply with all applicable occupational safety and health standards.
Case Types
OSHA violation and workplace safety citation defense
Industrial and construction accident investigation
Machine guarding and equipment safety deficiencies
Warning label and safety instruction adequacy
Safety program design and implementation failures
Qualifications
Related Specialties
FAQ
A safety engineering expert should hold the Certified Safety Professional (CSP) designation, ideally with a PE license. They should have extensive knowledge of OSHA standards and experience investigating workplace accidents. Industry-specific experience relevant to the case is important.
Safety engineers are needed in workplace accident cases, OSHA citation appeals, product liability claims involving safety features, construction site accident investigations, and any dispute where compliance with safety standards and regulations is at issue.
In general, engineering expert fees are determined by the expert themselves, based on a variety of criteria. Among those criteria are professional experience, forensic experience, engineering certifications and licensure, industry specialization, and publications. Vident does have some influence over expert fees by comparing experts within a specialty, but ultimately it is a personal decision by the expert.
Related Insights
1. NDMA Contamination and Cancer Risk Core Allegation: Plaintiffs allege that Zantac (ranitidine) is inherently unstable and can break down into N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), a probable human...
Research BriefingOur previous post concerned a knee replacement products liability lawsuit against DePuy. However, a recent review indicates that active cases against DePuy are rare at this time. The landscape of...
Practice Area IntelligenceA number of cosmetic (makeup) products – such as blush, eyeshadow, foundation, and liquid makeup – contain talc. In recent years, every major cosmetics manufacturer has been sued for alleged...
Vident Partners connects attorneys with qualified safety engineering expert witnesses. Complimentary consultation, 24-hour turnaround, no obligation.
Request an Expert →