Geoforensic and legal aspects of site investigations

Use of geological information as clue for identifying responsibility of an engineering problem related to construction, land use and water resource management can provide significant help to the legal system. Flooding of basements in several houses in a residential area located in Al Ain city occurred in a more or less chaotic pattern. Results of the geoforensic investigation indicate that houses that are accidently built on the gravel paleochannel had their basement flooded compared to those lying outside the channel. Thus when it comes to the legal aspect of the case, then the nature geological conditions have contributed to the damage and not the construction practices.