Vident Partners provides vetted indoor air quality expert witnesses for cases involving sick building complaints, building-related illness, ventilation failures, radon, volatile organic compounds, Legionella, and landlord, employer, or school liability for air in occupied buildings nationwide. Request a referral today.
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An indoor air quality expert answers whether something in this building's air could have caused these people's symptoms, and where it came from. Most cases do not have a single test result that settles them. A strong opinion ties together what occupants reported, what the building's systems were doing, what sampling found, and what a physician concluded. This page covers occupied buildings generally. Moisture and mold have their own page, outdoor air and emissions have another, and diagnosis belongs to an occupational physician or toxicologist.
The EPA defines indoor air quality as the air quality within and around buildings and structures, especially as it relates to the health and comfort of occupants 1. It identifies indoor pollution sources that release gases or particles as the primary cause of problems, and says inadequate ventilation can increase pollutant levels by not bringing in enough outdoor air to dilute emissions and not carrying pollutants out 1. So the investigation has two halves: the source and the air exchange.
This surprises many clients. OSHA states that it does not have indoor air quality standards, although it does have standards about ventilation and on some of the air contaminants that can be involved 2. It points to the General Duty Clause as a separate source of duty 2, and notes that some states have their own indoor air regulations, naming California and New Jersey on that page 2. Employers, landlords, schools and builders each face different duties, so the first task is to identify the one in the case. Consensus ventilation standards and building codes can supply a benchmark, and an expert must say which edition applied when the building was designed or altered.
An EPA guide for health professionals draws a line that matters in court. It reserves the term building related illness for situations in which signs and symptoms of diagnosable illness are identified and can be attributed directly to specific airborne building contaminants, with Legionnaires' disease and hypersensitivity pneumonitis as examples 3. Sick building syndrome describes a different picture, and the guide's discussion separates it from this category 3. The label shapes the causation fight. A diagnosable illness tied to a specific contaminant gives the plaintiff a stronger path than general complaints in a group of occupants.
EPA's consumer guide describes immediate effects, after a single or repeated exposure, including irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, headaches, dizziness and fatigue, and says these are usually short-term and treatable 4. Those symptoms are also common and nonspecific. An expert should look at timing, such as whether symptoms ease away from the building, and at who was affected.
A single air sample is a snapshot. Conditions move with weather, occupancy and HVAC settings, and conditions at the time of the complaint may be gone by the time anyone measures. An expert should document the HVAC design, outdoor air intake, filters, maintenance records, recent renovation, and the location and timing of each sample. Results compared with occupational limits can mislead, since those limits were generally set for workers and not for the full range of people in a home or school. Counsel should expect a challenge to any opinion that reaches causation from a sample alone.
A certified industrial hygienist or a mechanical engineer with building ventilation experience is a common choice, and the two fit different questions. An industrial hygienist addresses exposure assessment and sampling. A mechanical engineer addresses the HVAC system. An occupational physician or toxicologist addresses whether the exposure caused the illness. An epidemiologist may address a cluster of cases. Keep each within their field, since a sampling expert who offers a diagnosis invites a motion to exclude.
The EPA reserves the term building related illness for situations in which signs and symptoms of diagnosable illness are identified and can be attributed directly to specific airborne building contaminants.
Case Types
Sick building complaints in offices, schools, and hospitals
Building-related illness, including Legionnaires' disease
Tenant claims against landlords over air in rental housing
Ventilation and HVAC design or maintenance failures
Radon testing, disclosure, and mitigation disputes in real estate
Off-gassing from renovation, flooring, and composite wood
Workplace exposure complaints and workers' compensation claims
Insurance coverage disputes over air quality losses
Qualifications
Related Specialties
FAQ
Common choices are a certified industrial hygienist for exposure and sampling, and a mechanical engineer with building ventilation experience for the HVAC system. Look for field work in occupied buildings. A physician or toxicologist should address whether the exposure caused an illness.
Not a single one. OSHA says it does not have indoor air quality standards, although it has standards about ventilation and on some air contaminants, and it notes the General Duty Clause. Some states have their own rules. Duties differ for employers, landlords, schools, and builders, so the expert should start with the one in the case.
An EPA guide for health professionals reserves building related illness for situations in which diagnosable illness can be attributed directly to specific airborne building contaminants, such as Legionnaires' disease. Sick building syndrome describes a different picture. The difference affects causation, since a specific diagnosis tied to a specific contaminant is a stronger path.
The EPA recommends fixing a home if the radon level is 4 pCi/L or more, and it says there is no known safe level of exposure. Disputes often concern when testing was done, how it was done, and whether results were disclosed in a sale. State law governs disclosure.
Rarely on its own. A sample is a snapshot, and conditions change with weather, occupancy, and HVAC settings. An opinion is stronger when sampling is combined with symptom timing, the building's records, and a physician's assessment. Occupational limits may also not fit a home or school.
In general, indoor air quality expert fees are determined by the expert themselves, based on a variety of criteria. Among those criteria are field experience, forensic experience, professional certifications, the need for sampling, 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.
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