Source, not appearance
Mold on a ceiling can come from the roof, the neighbour, condensation or a leak inside the wall. Each is a different defendant. Moisture mapping with a thermal camera tells them apart, and a photograph of the stain does not.
Claims and disputes
"there is mold" is a claim. a sample is evidence.
In a dispute over mold every side brings photographs. What decides is who can say what was there, how much, from where, and since when, with a method that can be checked. A mold test for a claim is done from day one as if it will be filed: chain of custody, an outdoor sample for comparison, dated documentation, and an independent laboratory.
- 1chain of custody per sample
- 0interest in the outcome
- 10-14business days to results and report
Why looking is not enough
what a photograph does not prove.
Most mold files reach the lawyer as a folder of photographs and correspondence. That is enough to prove there was a stain. It is not enough to prove from where, since when, and what it did to the air.
How much, against what
There are spores in all air. The claim that there is "mold in the air" fails without an outdoor sample from the same hour. Concentration against outdoors is the number a court can compare.
Who measured
A test ordered by the other side, or by a contractor who also offers to repair, sounds exactly like what it is. An accredited partner laboratory that does not profit from the result is the thing the other side cannot attack.
What we measure
what can be defended under cross-examination.
Every method is chosen for what it can prove and what can be asked about it. That is why a report for a claim states the method, not only the result.
Visit and air samples
An air sample in the room and outdoors at the same hour, moisture mapping with readings and thermal images, all with location and date.
About this methodSurface samples
Species identification from every stain. Species of prolonged wetness, such as Stachybotrys and Chaetomium, speak to duration, and duration is a question of liability.
About this methodERMI test
When the mold has already been cleaned or painted over: DNA from the dust proves what grew in the property over months, after the visible evidence is gone.
About this methodFrom the sample to the hearing
chain of custody, step by step.
A lab report holds up in court when one question can be answered: how do we know this result refers to this sample from this place on this day. This is the route that answers it.
Before the visit: what the lawyer asks for
What has to be proven: source, duration, extent, or effect on the air. Each question calls for different samples. It is also worth agreeing whether the other side is invited to the visit. Their presence does not weaken the report, and their documented absence sometimes helps.
The visit: documentation before touching
Every room is photographed before anything is moved. Every moisture reading is recorded with location, value, time and a thermal image. Samples are numbered on site, sealed in front of the client, and logged on a custody form with the collection time.
The transfer: from site to laboratory
The samples travel in a sealed container to the partner laboratory, which holds accreditation for these methods. The lab confirms receipt, the condition of the seals and the match of numbers. From here the form changes hands with a signature at every station.
The analysis: what is reported
For every sample: the method, the air volume or surface area, the species identified, the concentration, and the method's detection limit. The report also states what was not tested and why, because "we did not test that" is better than a question mark under cross-examination.
The report: laboratory report versus expert opinion
Our laboratory report is factual documentation: what was found, where, how much, and what it says about the source. An expert opinion for court is a separate document in the format the procedural rules prescribe, written on the basis of the report when the lawyer asks. We say up front which of the two you need.
Worth knowing: we test and do not remediate. That is exactly what lets us be a witness and not a party.
What you receive
a report written to be filed.
Clients have submitted the report in small claims, in mediation, to insurers, to building committees and in disputes with contractors. It is written so a lawyer can quote from it without translating.
- Dated documentation: Photographs, moisture readings and thermal images with location, time and date, in the order they were collected.
- Lab results per sample: Species, concentrations, method and detection limit, for every sample separately, against the outdoor sample, from the partner laboratory.
- The chain-of-custody form: The full record from collection to result, with the signatures, attached to the report.
- A conclusion on source and duration: What caused the moisture, how long it has existed judging by the species and the damage, and what was affected. The basis for the question of who is liable, which the court decides and not us.
Who orders
who orders this test.
- Real estate and tort lawyers
- Tenants against a landlord
- Buyers against a seller or contractor
- Building committees against a resident or contractor
- Adjusters and insurers
Before you book
What people ask before a claim.
Is your laboratory report admissible in court?
The report is factual documentation with a chain of custody, a detailed method and results from an accredited partner laboratory for every sample, which is what lets a lawyer file it and defend it. Admissibility and weight are decided by the court in each case. If an expert opinion in the format the procedural rules prescribe is required, it is written as a separate document on the basis of the report, in coordination with the lawyer. We do not give legal advice.
The mold has already been cleaned or painted over. Can it still be proven?
Usually yes. An ERMI test analyses DNA from the dust that accumulated in the property over months, so it finds what grew even after the stain is gone. A moisture meter and a thermal camera show whether the moisture source still exists under the paint. And a surface sample from the edge of the stain or behind a panel identifies the species. The three together document a history, not only a current state.
What is the difference between a lab report and an expert opinion?
The lab report documents what was found, where, how much, by which method and what it says about the moisture source. An expert opinion for court is a document in the format the civil procedure rules prescribe, with the expert's declaration, experience and conclusions, written on the basis of the report when the lawyer asks. In most disputes, in mediation and in small claims, the report alone is enough. We say up front which of the two you need.
Should the other side be invited to the test?
That is your lawyer's decision, and we work either way. The other side's presence does not weaken the report: the method, the samples and the signatures are the same. Their documented absence, after a written invitation, sometimes helps. What matters is that the samples are sealed on site in front of a witness, numbered and logged on a custody form with the collection time, in every case.
Before you book
Worth reading.
Other situations
not your situation?
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