Document construction staking standard of care and manage liability exposure

Steps

1. Establish a written scope-of-work agreement before staking begins, explicitly defining what will be staked, to what tolerance, and from which design plan revision — verbal-only staking agreements are a major liability gap.
2. Maintain a revision log tracking every design plan version received and which version was used for each staking visit, since disputes often hinge on whether the surveyor staked from outdated plans.
3. Keep field notes/cut sheets that account for every stake set, including the cut/fill from the reference point to design elevation, and flag in writing any ambiguity or apparent conflict in the plans before proceeding rather than staking through it silently.
4. For any field change requested by a contractor/foreman that deviates from approved plans, require written direction from the design team or owner's authorized representative, and have both the foreman and surveyor sign off before implementing the change.
5. Retain complete staking records (scope agreement, revision log, field notes, written change authorizations, as-built certifications) in the project file for the duration of your state's professional-liability statute of repose/limitations.