Transportation professionals regularly develop emails, technical guidance, reports, and public-facing materials that communicate an agency’s decisions and actions. Precise, objective language can help agencies communicate clearly while avoiding statements that may unintentionally create or increase liability. TRB will host a webinar on Thursday, October 29, 2026 from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM Eastern that will examine legal concepts related to liability-neutral language and how they apply to transportation communications. Presenters will share examples of language that can introduce unnecessary risk, including subjective terms such as “dangerous,” or “sufficient,” and demonstrate how statements can be revised using objective, fact-based language. Attendees will learn practical approaches for critically reviewing their own writing and improving internal and public-facing communications.
This webinar is sponsored by TRB’s Standing Technical Committee on Safety, Risk Management and Tort Liability.
The registration fee is $60. Purchase a webinar package for discounted pricing. Complimentary registration is available for employees of TRB sponsors, standing technical committee chairs, involved CRP panel members, media, congressional staff, and TRB or National Academies staff. Visit MyTRB.org for details.
A recording will be sent to all registrants after the webinar.
Webinar agenda and presenters
The first 40 minutes of the webinar will be for presentations and the final 20 minutes will be reserved for audience questions.
Learning Objectives
At the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
Professional Development Hours
Professional engineers (PEs) who register and attend the entire webinar as an individual will be awarded 1 Professional Development Hour (PDH). TRB’s webinar program awards PDH credits only to the registered individual, and not to other members of a group that view the webinar together. To be eligible for the credits, individuals must remain signed in for the entire webinar, including for any question and answer session following the presentations.
This webinar will be delivered as a scheduled – e-learning live event and is categorized within RCEP as Technical, Health and Safety.
Please check with your licensing board to ensure that TRB webinar PDHs are approved by your board.
TRB will report credits earned to the Registered Continuing Education Program (RCEP). Complaints about registered providers may be sent to RCEP, 1015 15th Street, NW, 8th Floor, Washington, D.C., 20005.
Continuing Legal Education Credits
TRB is offering 1 CLE credits for this webinar. TRB did not seek approval for this webinar from the state board, so we advise that you contact your state board prior to registering for the webinar to see if credits would be accepted. Registered webinar attendees who sign in and view the entire webinar will receive a link to a certificate that they can fill out and provide to their board. Complete a certificate for each state in which you are required to file. Rules for CLE in some states require the provider to file attendance with the regulator as a service to lawyers. Please confirm jurisdictional reporting requirements with the state regulator. This certificate should be filed with the appropriate MCLE Board(s) or Commission(s) within 30 days of activity. Introductory remarks, keynote addresses, business meetings, breaks, receptions, etc., are not included in the computation of credit. TRB will retain a copy of your attendance; however, TRB is not required to submit attendance to the board.
Pre-registration is required. Once the webinar starts, you will be unable to register. Individuals that are registered for a webinar but do not receive their confirmation emails due to their organization’s internal firewalls should contact TRB Helpdesk for assistance in signing in.
View our FAQ page for more information.
Registration questions? Contact TRB webinar program.
