A Real Case of Professional Misconduct That Sparked an Ethics Firestorm

A Real Case of Professional Misconduct That Sparked an Ethics Firestorm

Picture this — you spend months working on the design and construction of a project, and next thing you know, another engineer is on the news poking holes in it for everybody to see. How'd you feel? 🤔

In this episode, we dive into a situation like this that happened in real life in a state highway project. What started as a difference in technical opinion only became a full-blown ethics investigation…that even resulted in formal disciplinary action! 😮

This story is a perfect reminder that being a civil engineer isn’t just about being good at the technical craft only. Instead, it’s also about ethical conduct — professionalism, integrity, and knowing when (and how) to speak up.

The problem? Most engineers don’t take the ASCE Code of Ethics seriously. They feel like it’s one of those things that “only matter in theory.”

Well, it may be…until it doesn’t. And this real-life situation makes it pretty clear.

If you’ve ever questioned the importance of ethics in real-world practice — not just on the FE or PE exams — this one’s a must-listen. All of us deal with it. Project after project.

So, tune in to learn from this real case and make sure you never end up on the wrong side of the ethics line.


🧠 TUNE IN TO LEARN:

  • The Story Behind This Real-Life Ethical Misconduct in a Nutshell (And How It Ended)

  • Why This Misconduct Violated 2 Canons of the ASCE Code of Ethics

  • Is It a Problem to Have Other Engineers Review Your Work?

  • What Not to Do When Reviewing Another Engineer's Work

  • Why It's 100x Easier Today to Make the Same Ethical Mistake

  • The Canon of the ASCE Code of Ethics That You Need to Live By

  • What's a Letter of Censure?

  • The Biggest Take Away of This Real-Life Case

  • The One Time Mark Got "Called Out" for His Design (And What He Did)

  • How to Review the Work of Other Engineers Correctly

  • What Should You Do When Less Experienced Engineers Call You Out?

  • 3 Guardrails to Handle Professional Disagreements Ethically

  • 2 Tricks to Deal With Criticism of Your Work Without Hurting Your Reputation

  • The Ethics Topic on Your Professional Exams


🔗 RESOURCES MENTIONED:

ASCE Article

ASCE Code of Ethics

Tara Hoke


🎁 OUR FREEBIES FOR YOU:

The Civil FE Startup Guide

The Civil PE Startup Guide

FREE CFM® Course Module


🖥️ OUR REVIEW COURSES:

Civil FE Review Course

Civil PE Review Courses

CFM® Review Course


📚 OUR PRACTICE EXAMS:

FE Practice Exams

FE CBT Exam Simulator

PE Bonus Theory Questions

PE Practice Exams

PE CBT Exam Simulator

CFM® Practice Exam

FE Environmental Practice Exam

PE Environmental Practice Exam


📱 CONNECT WITH CEA!

Website

Newsletter

Free CEA Community

LinkedIn

YouTube Channel

support@civilengineeringacademy.com

Episoder(328)

CEA 2025 Year in Review!

CEA 2025 Year in Review!

Every year, we like to hit pause, look in the rearview mirror, and reflect on everything that happened in the past year. We just did that with our 2025 Year in Review…and that was a crazy one! 😅In th...

5 Mar 18min

Passing the CFM® Exam After 3 Tries as an Electrical Engineer With Chris Moe

Passing the CFM® Exam After 3 Tries as an Electrical Engineer With Chris Moe

Think Floodplain Management is only for Water Resources Engineers? Those already working in water- and flood-related fields? 🤔 Well, this interview with Chris Moe will make you rethink that. 👇Chris ...

26 Feb 31min

How Civil Firm Owners Can Plan a Smart Exit From Day One With Laurie Barkman

How Civil Firm Owners Can Plan a Smart Exit From Day One With Laurie Barkman

Do you know the biggest mistake AEC firm owners make? 🤔They get lost in the busy work and never plan how they’ll leave the business one day. That’s why this episode with Laurie Barkman is huge!Known ...

19 Feb 30min

A Structural Engineering Niche Most Don't Know About With Dr. Joshua Schultz

A Structural Engineering Niche Most Don't Know About With Dr. Joshua Schultz

When you think of “Structural Engineering,” you likely picture big concrete or steel structures. Right? 🤔 Exactly — and that’s the problem! 👇There’s a whole corner of that industry outside of these ...

12 Feb 42min

A Single Mom's Journey to Pass the PE After 5 Years and 4 Tries With Bianca Wilson

A Single Mom's Journey to Pass the PE After 5 Years and 4 Tries With Bianca Wilson

Passing the PE Exam is difficult enough already. Now imagine doing it as a single mother, with 3 successive failed attempts over 5 years, and having to start from scratch after switching exams? 😮That...

5 Feb 33min

The Future of Civil Engineering School With AI: Raising or Lowering the Bar?

The Future of Civil Engineering School With AI: Raising or Lowering the Bar?

AI is already everywhere. Students are using it. Companies are relying on it. And schools are feeling the pressure to do the same. The question is — is it  raising the bar…or quietly lowering it? 🤔In...

29 Jan 32min

Starting and Running Your Own Structural Engineering Practice With Daniel Bressler

Starting and Running Your Own Structural Engineering Practice With Daniel Bressler

Ever told yourself you’d “start your own firm one day?” 🤔 Most civil engineers have, but they kick it down the road because they don’t know what it takes.If that’s you, this interview with Daniel Bre...

22 Jan 41min

The Geotech Influencer Growing Engineering Firms Worldwide With David Jasinski

The Geotech Influencer Growing Engineering Firms Worldwide With David Jasinski

Long gone were the days when engineering was only about the technical work! Today, you can take your technical skills, flip it, and use it in a way that’s never been possible before — and this episode...

15 Jan 30min

Populært innen Fakta

fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
treningspodden
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
rss-sunn-okonomi
jakt-og-fiskepodden
foreldreradet
hverdagspsyken
rss-kunsten-a-leve
merry-quizmas
gravid-uke-for-uke
rss-mann-i-krise-med-sagen
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
fryktlos
sinnsyn
rss-impressions-2
hagespiren-podcast
rss-kull
dopet