Expert Witness in Urgent Care Design and Construction
Bernstein & Associates, Architects, through its principal William N. Bernstein, AIA, has provided expert witness services in matters involving the design and construction of urgent care facilities and related properties. Attorneys litigating cases that involve construction defects, urgent care exam room and procedure room design problems, triage and intake area defects, on-site lab and x-ray room design and shielding issues, sutures, casting, and minor procedure area defects, HVAC and ventilation problems, accessibility violations, fire safety and egress issues under business or ambulatory health care occupancy classifications, water infiltration and building envelope failures, tenant fit-out disputes, phased-construction problems, and other claims related to the design and construction of urgent care facilities require an expert witness architect who understands both the applicable building codes and standards and the practical realities of how those requirements are applied in the design, construction, and renovation of real urgent care facilities.
About Urgent Care Design and Construction
Urgent care design and construction encompasses a range of facility types, including freestanding urgent care centers, in-line and retail-based urgent care centers, multi-tenant medical building urgent care, occupational health and workers’ compensation urgent care, pediatric urgent care, urgent care centers with on-site radiology, urgent care centers with on-site laboratory services, hospital-affiliated urgent care centers, and the support spaces that serve them, including triage and intake areas, exam rooms, minor procedure rooms, sutures and casting areas, x-ray rooms, point-of-care lab areas, waiting and check-in areas, and staff and patient support spaces.
The design and construction of urgent care facilities is governed by a complex framework of technical standards, including the applicable building code (for example, in New York City, the New York City Building Code), the International Building Code, ICC A117.1, NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, ADA requirements, the FGI Guidelines for Design and Construction of Outpatient Facilities (urgent care provisions), Urgent Care Association (UCA) and Joint Commission accreditation standards, CDC infection-control guidelines for ambulatory care, OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, state radiation control regulations governing on-site x-ray, state department of health requirements (including, in New York, Article 28 requirements where applicable), and applicable medical board regulations.
Disputes commonly arise over construction defects affecting building envelopes, interior finishes, and clinical spaces; exam room and minor procedure room layout problems; triage and intake design defects; on-site x-ray room shielding deficiencies; on-site lab area design problems; HVAC and ventilation deficiencies; non-compliant accessibility features; inadequate fire-rated assemblies and egress under business or ambulatory health care occupancy classifications; tenant fit-out and landlord-tenant matters in multi-tenant buildings; and disputes arising from phased-construction projects. Responsibility for compliance with the applicable standards is shared, in different ways, among the operator, the landlord, the design professional, the contractor, subcontractors, specialty vendors, and the party responsible for ongoing maintenance, and litigation in this area frequently turns on the allocation of responsibility for design decisions, construction means and methods, and post-occupancy maintenance.
Expert Witness Services Related to Urgent Care Design and Construction
Expert witness services in urgent care design and construction matters typically include a careful review of the project documents (drawings, specifications, submittals, RFIs, change orders, permits, certificates of occupancy, ICRA plans, department of health filings and approvals, lease agreements, commissioning reports, and as-built conditions), a site survey to measure and document the conditions at issue, comparison of those conditions against the applicable building codes, life safety codes, ambulatory care facility guidelines, accreditation standards, accessibility standards, and industry standards of care, review of construction administration records and maintenance histories, and the preparation of clear, well-supported opinions regarding the cause of the defect or failure, the responsibility of the various parties, and the standard of care applicable to the design, construction, and maintenance of urgent care facilities.
An effective urgent care design and construction expert witness must be able to explain technical requirements — triage and patient flow design, exam room and minor procedure room layout, on-site x-ray shielding, on-site lab design, HVAC and ventilation, fire-rated assembly construction, egress geometry, accessibility clearances, and building envelope detailing — in plain language to judges, juries, arbitrators, and mediators, and must have the credentials, written record, and courtroom-ready communication skills to render credible opinions.
Mr. Bernstein is a Yale-trained, NCARB-certified, LEED-accredited, registered architect. He has expertise in architectural design, engineering design, and construction as the founder/owner of an architectural firm, Bernstein & Associates, Architects, (1990-present) and as the founder/owner of a construction project management firm, Empire Projects, Inc. (2003-Present). He has been the expert witness (as of May 2026) on (40) cases involving design and construction (2006-present) across the United States and Internationally.
Mr. Bernstein’s urgent care design experience includes urgent care and walk-in clinic projects, including the Urgent Care Center of Brooklyn and other ambulatory care facilities. This depth of hands-on architectural design experience — from program development and code analysis through construction administration and commissioning — provides the technical foundation needed to render credible expert opinions on urgent care design and construction disputes.
Contact
Please contact Bernstein & Associates, for expert witness services related to the design and construction of urgent care facilities.