A One-Foot Bust, a Certificate of Compliance, and a Large Client

The error is yours, and it is not confidential. You prepared and certified the plat, so the duty to correct it runs first to the integrity of the record and to the public who rely on it. That includes the county, the current lot purchaser, the purchaser's lender and title insurer, the builder, and the adjoining owner whose hedge and lot line are affected.

Obligations to the developer-client include competent service and reasonable confidentiality about the client's business. Confidentiality does not extend to concealing your own error where third parties will rely on the erroneous document, and it does not permit a false certification.

Specific duties: report the discrepancy accurately; correct the record through the mechanism the state provides, typically an amended plat, affidavit of correction, or similar instrument, with the county's approval; disclose to the parties whose reliance is at risk; and maintain the documentation. Payment for other projects is a separate contractual matter and cannot be conditioned on silence or on a false certificate.

A useful test: if the purchaser later learns the line was misstated and asks what you knew and when, the answer should be that you found it, reported it, and sought correction promptly.

Verify first, then document, then disclose, then correct.

1. Re-check the field data, the field book, the plat, and the staking file independently. Confirm that the 1.1 ft bust is real and identify every lot affected, not just Lot 6.
2. Photograph and measure the as-built conditions, including the hedge and the actual wall location relative to both candidate lines.
3. Put the finding in a dated written report to the developer: what happened, which lots are affected, the consequence for the setback, and the options.
4. Consult the county planning/building department about the correction procedure and whether the certificate of occupancy is affected. Consult counsel and, if appropriate, your state board's guidance.
5. Notify the parties whose reliance is at risk: the lot purchaser, the lender and title company if they are relying on your plat, and the adjoining owner. The timing and content of these notices may be governed by statute, so take advice on them.
6. Prepare the corrective instrument and any amended plat, and record it.

Throughout, keep the tone factual. The goal is a corrected record and informed parties, not a defense of the original plat.

Decline, and put the refusal in writing. A certificate of compliance is a professional statement that the improvements meet the applicable requirements. Here the answer depends on which line is correct, and the correct line is the recorded plat line until the record is corrected. Issuing a certificate that treats the staked line as the governing line would misstate the setback condition and would compound the original error.

What you can do instead:

• Prepare an accurate as-built showing both lines, the wall, the hedge, and the setback envelope, with the discrepancy clearly labeled.
• State the setback status under each line and the steps needed to resolve it: amend the plat, obtain a variance or administrative relief from the setback, or, if the parties choose, relocate the wall. Those are decisions for the owner, the county, and the adjoining owner.
• Offer to attend the meeting with the county and to prepare the correction documents promptly, at no additional fee, since the error originated in your work.
• If payment pressure continues, keep performing under the contract and address payment through ordinary means; do not trade certification for compensation.

Document the request and your response, and consult counsel if the developer continues to press for a certificate that the facts do not support.