Section 43-4-16. Architect seal; documents required to be sealed; requirements to be met before being sealed; assumption of responsibility; notation if not furnishing construction administration; violation and penalties; documents prepared by registered interior designer

   (a) Every architect registered under this chapter shall have a seal in the design authorized by the board, bearing the registrant's name, certificate number, and the legends "Registered Architect" and "State of Georgia."

(b) Plans, specifications, drawings, reports, or other architectural documents issued for the purpose of obtaining a building permit or for other requirements set forth by law shall be sealed by the architect and across the face of the seal shall be affixed the signature of the owner of the seal. The location of the seal on such documents, the identification of the pages which must be sealed, and the form of any title blocks may be established by the board in its rules and regulations.

(c) No plans, specifications, drawings, reports, or other documents shall be sealed and signed by an architect unless:

   (1) The architect has a current registration to practice in this state and is competent in the subject matter of the documents by virtue of education or experience or both;

   (2) The architect personally prepared the plans, specifications, drawings, reports, or other documents, or the plans, specifications, drawings, reports, or other documents were prepared under the architect's responsible control as provided in subsection (b) of Code Section 43-4-10; and

   (3) The architect has been given full authority in writing by the original architect to make document revisions and has made a substantive review and inspection of the documents with regard to the laws and regulations of this state, and the documents are prototypical drawings. For purposes of this paragraph, prototypical drawings are drawings that may be prepared by an architect licensed in any country or United States jurisdiction, that have been prepared in connection with the design of a commercial chain establishment, and that have been successfully constructed in other states or countries.

(d) The registered architect who signs and seals the plans, specifications, drawings, reports, or other documents shall be considered the architect of record.

(e) No registered architect shall affix his or her seal to any plan, specification, drawing, report, or other document unless he or she has assumed the responsibility for the accuracy and adequacy of the work involved.

(f) If the registered architect who sealed the technical submissions submitted to the building official at the time the building permit is issued has not been employed to furnish construction administration services, he or she shall so note on such technical submissions in such manner as defined by board rules. If the architect's responsibility for construction contract administration is terminated following the issuance of a building permit, the building official shall be notified by the architect in writing accordingly.

(g) Any violation of this Code section shall be grounds for the suspension or revocation of the registration of the architect.

(h) Nothing in this Code section shall be construed to prohibit a registered architect from sealing drawings or documents prepared by a registered interior designer when such registered architect has reviewed or supervised the preparation of the drawings or documents as provided in Code Section 43-4-33.

(i) Nothing in this Code section shall be construed to prohibit a licensed engineer from sealing engineering drawings and documents as provided in Code Section 43-4-14.

Ga. L. 1955, p. 602, § 5; Ga. L. 1974, p. 162, § 11; Ga. L. 1992, p. 3318, § 1; Ga. L. 1993, p. 123, § 19; Ga. L. 2000, p. 1527, § 1; Ga. L. 2001, p. 741, § 2.