However, the issue has been resurrected in a lawsuit filed in September by Mandalay Resort Group, the casino's parent company, in Clark County District Court.

In the lawsuit the company accuses Lenexa, Kan.-based engineering firm Terracon Consultants Western Inc. of doing shoddy soil testing and offering ineffective solutions to the settling -- an engineering term for sinking.

Mike Sloan, Mandalay Resort Group senior vice president, did confirm that settling hasn't been a problem since the foundation was fortified.

"I'm comfortable that the mitigation was effective and the building is safe," Sloan said.

The lawsuit accuses Terracon of breaching a contract the company had with Mandalay Resort-forerunner Circus Circus Enterprises by "providing inadequate and / or substandard work," and of negligence. Mandalay Resort Group is seeking more than $10,000 in compensatory, incidental and consequential damages from Terracon Consultants.

The case was moved to U.S. District Court in late October, and on Nov. 5 Terracon Consultants Western Inc. filed an answer to the complaint. Sloan declined to specify how much it ultimately cost the company to remedy the problem. However, it was previously reported that the company paid between $8 million and $10 million to fortify the foundation.

The casino's first tower opened in March 1999 after construction began in 1997 and cost about $950 million to build. The hotel's second tower opened about a year ago. There have been no problems with settling at the new tower, said Ron Lynn, building official with the Clark County Department of Development Services.

He said the first tower's position is continuously monitored through on-site monitoring equipment and through yearly visits by the Clark County Department of Development Services.

"The overall weight (is lighter), and the foundation systems are enhanced," Lynn said of the second tower.

The lawsuit said during the course of the building's construction in 1998 the property settled 18 inches, or five times the amount of settling Terracon's consultants predicted. The lawsuit said, "excessive movement of the earth beneath the building foundation occurred ultimately resulting in subsistence, settlement, deflection and twisting of the structures well above the design tolerances." Thomas Buchanan, an attorney for Terracon Consultants Western Inc., denied Mandalay Resort Group's allegations in a statement.

"Terracon performed its services properly and has no liability," Buchanan said in the statement. "What happened was totally unexpected. Both Mandalay Bay and the Clark County Building Department Assistant Director agreed in news articles at the time that Terracon acted properly."

Mandalay Resort Group also sued four of its insurance companies in February 2000 for not covering expenses the casino operator incurred as a result of the settling. Buchanan said Mandalay Bay officials "specifically agreed that Terracon met the standard of care," in court filings related to the lawsuit filed against the insurance companies.

Court documents indicate that the case against Factory Mutual Insurance, FM Global, Allendale Mutual Insurance and Layne and Associates Ltd. Insurance settled earlier this year.

However, it is unclear what the terms of the settlement were. Attorneys for Mandalay Resort Group and Sloan declined to comment on the litigation, and an attorney for Factory Mutual Insurance Co. could not be reached for comment.

Lynn said Mandalay Bay's settling problems served as a lesson for other builders to make sure they do proper soil testing and build strong foundations.

"I think certainly the Mandalay episode put people on alert," Lynn said. "We're seeing people put in deeper foundation up front. Putting a little bit of extra concrete there as a security measure sometimes makes sense."

With the Las Vegas Valley currently undergoing a condo-tower building craze, Lynn said he doesn't expect any more problems with buildings settling excessively.

"We don't foresee it as more of a problem," Lynn said, adding that condominium towers are often lighter than casino towers. He also said the soil quality throughout the Las Vegas Valley varies, which could affect whether a building is going to have a problem with settling.

"You can't compare a high-rise casino structure to a condo," Lynn said. He said because of the variability of the Las Vegas Valley's soil, proper soil testing is imperative.

"I recommend they conduct sound engineering analysis in the exploratory phases and they compare those results with what is recommended by the structural engineer and comply with both the (Clark County building) code and sound engineering practices."

Alana Roberts covers courts and labor relations for In Business Las Vegas and its sister publication, the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached by e-mail at alanar@lasvegassun.com or at (702) 259-4059.