Engineering law

In North America, four years of engineering education and four years of professional experience are common requirements before being licensed as an engineer.

16–40 hours of update training per year are also generally required for a licensed engineer to continue to practice, to ensure they stay current with relevant codes, standards and technology.

Key topic areas for engineering law are:

• Ethics, professional misconduct, negligent practice and gross negligence
• Tort law is integral to assigning blame and penalties after engineering failures
• Contract law is the promissory basis for the vast majority of engineering projects
• Product liability law for manufactured products
• Intellectual property protection, which includes patents, copyrights, trade secrets and integrated circuit topographies.
• Safety legislation codes, and regulations, which includes plant safety, risk management, the electrical code and food safety
• Standards and certification, which can be product or system specific constraints on design and testing processes often imposed for health and safety reasons.

In the United States of America and Canada engineering is governed by state or provincial law.

• In New York, engineers are governed by Article 145 of the Education Law.[4]
• Pennsylvania has the Engineer, Land Surveyor and Geologist Registration Law. Act of May 23, 1945 P.L. 913, No 367 Cl 63.[5]
• Vermont Title 26 Professions and Occupations Chapter 20 Professional Engineering.[6]
• New Hampshire Section 310-A.[7]
• Massachusetts M.G.L. Chapter 112, Sections 81D to 81T, M.G.L. Chapter 112 Sections 61 to 65E and 250 CMR 5: Professional Practice.[8]
• Michigan law regulating and licensing engineering is under Article 20 of Public Act 299 of 1980.[9]
• Illinois Statutes lists Professions, Occupations, And Business Operations (225 ILCS 325/) Professional Engineering Practice Act of 1989.[10]
• Maine General Provisions (32 M.R.S.A. §1251 et seq.); State Board of Licensure (32 M.R.S.A. §1301 et seq.); Licensure (32 M.R.S.A. §1351 et seq.)[11]
• Wyoming Title 33 Professions and Occupations; Chapter 29 Surveyors and Engineers[12]
• Florida Administrative Code Chapter 61G15 Board of Professional Engineers Organization; Florida Statutes Chapter 471 – Engineering; Chapter 455 – Professional Regulation[13]
• Ontario passed the Professional Engineers Act, R.S.O. 1990, Chapter 28 and R.R.O. Regulation 941: General.[14]
• Alberta Engineering and Geosciences Act; Revised Statutes of Alberta 2000 Chapter E-11.[15]
• California Professional Engineers Act; Business and Professions Code; 6700 - 6799; Chapter 7.[16]
• Arkansas lists the Engineer Law (A.C.A. § 17-30-101 et seq w/amendments from 2013 Legislative Session)[17]
• New Brunswick Chapter 9; Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act; Assented to June 5, 2015[18]
• Washington Chapter 18.43 RCW Engineers and Land Surveyors[19]
• Alaska Statutes Title 8 Chapter 48. Architects, Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Landscape Architects[20]
• 2010 Georgia Code Title 43 Professions and Businesses Chapter 15 Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.[21]
• The State of Texas Title 6 Subtitle A Chapter 1001 Engineering Practice Act and Rules Concerning The Practice of Engineering and Professional Licensure[22]
• Saskatchewan Chapter E-9.3 of the Statutes of Saskatchewan, 1996 (effective March 7, 1997) as amended by the Statutes of Saskatchewan, 1997, c.S-6.01; 2000, c.43; 2009, c.T-23.01; 2010, c.B-12 and c.19 and 20; 2013, c.C-21.1; 2014, c.E-13.1; and 2018, c.42.The Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act[23]
• Manitoba C.C.S.M. c. E120 The Engineering and Geoscientific Professions Act[24]
• Idaho Engineers and Surveyors Idaho Code, Title 54, Chapter 12[25]
• New Jersey State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors Law[26]
• Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 443 Examining Board Of Architects, Landscape Architects, Professional Engineers, Designers, And Professional Land Surveyors[27]
• Nova Scotia Engineering Profession Act Chapter 148 Of The Revised Statutes, 1989 amended 2006, c. 29; 2008, c. 15; 2009, c. 13; 2010, c. 15.[28]
• Prince Edward Island E-08-1 Engineering Profession Act[29]
• Maryland Title 14 Business Occupations and Professions Professional Engineers[30]
• Connecticut Chapter 391 Section 20-299 to 20-310 Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors[31]
• Delaware Tittle 24 Professions and Occupations Chapter 28. Professional Engineers[32]
• Virginia Regulations Governing Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects, Statutes Title 54.1, Chapter 4 Excerpts from Title 13.1[33]
• West Virginia Code Chapter 30 – Professions And Occupations Article 13 - Engineers[34]
• North Carolina General Statutes Of North Carolina Chapter 89C. Engineering And Land Surveying[35]
• South Carolina Chapter 22 Engineers and Surveyors; Chapter 49 Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation South Carolina State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Land Surveyor[36]
• Alabama Law Regulating Practice of Engineering and Land Surveying; Code of Alabama 1975, Title 34, Chapter 11[37]
• Mississippi Code of 1972; Title 73 Professions and Vocations Chapter 13 Engineers and Land Surveyors[38]
• British Columbia Engineers and Geoscientists Act [RSBC 1996] Chapter 116[39]
• Quebec chapter I-9 Engineers Act[40]
• Newfoundland Statutes of Newfoundland and Labrador 2008 Chapter E-12.1 An Act Respecting The Practice Of Engineering And Geoscience[41]
• Louisiana Laws; Revised Statutes; Title 37; Chapter 8 – Professional Engineering and Professional Surveying[42]
• State of Oklahoma Statutes Regulating Professional Engineering and Land Surveying; 475[43]

It is illegal for a practicing engineer to jeopardize public safety in any way.[44] This means that an engineer must hold herself or himself to the highest level of moral conduct or suffer litigation if an engineering system fails causing harm to the public, including maintenance technicians. Breaches of engineering law are often sufficient grounds for enforcement measures, which may include the suspension or loss of license and financial penalties. They may also include imprisonment, should gross negligence be shown to have played a part in loss of human life.

In cases of gross negligence, an engineering firm may not be considered vicariously liable for an individual engineer's offence.

California law dictates disciplinary proceedings by the Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists against a licensed engineer who has committed deceit, misrepresentation, negligence or a violation of contract.[45] The Professional Engineers of Ontario have a disciplinary committee that hears complaints of professional misconduct and incompetence.[46]

If an engineer is going to take legal responsibility for the work of an engineer in training, a technician or a natural scientist they must thoroughly review the work and ensure that adequate consideration has been given to the work. The engineer carries the legal responsibility for the consequences of the mistakes in the engineering work they have taken legal responsibility for according to the local Professional Engineering Statute.

Taking responsibility for engineering work applies to outsourcing where an engineer in North America may take responsibility for engineering work performed in India or China. Engineering legislation in North America is silent on geography. The licensed engineer must ensure public safety for work they are responsible for.

In many jurisdictions, engineering regulatory bodies require a seal or stamp for all engineering drawings, analysis and documentation related to any customer who relies on an engineer. The engineer sealing or stamping the work must be in control of it as an author or reviewer,[47] and the analysis or drawing must meet the standards of competent engineering and be able to be relied on as intended. The seal or stamp indicates that the engineer sealing the document or drawing is likely legally responsible for the mistakes in the document or drawing.

It is generally agreed that an engineer's stamp or seal communicates to officials and to the public that the document's contents reflect professional knowledge and care; and that applicable statues, standards, codes and regulations have been followed.[48] A customer who relies on an engineer's stamp is not likely to be liable for the work it covers.

A sealed or stamped engineering work is often considered the controlled copy of the work.

It does not matter whether or not the customer asked for the seal or stamp. The analysis or drawing must be sealed or stamped if it is a technical engineering work. Internal analysis or drawings within a corporation or a partnership need not be sealed or stamped, although they may be, at the engineer or organization's discretion. Non-engineering work such as financial analysis or contracts must not be stamped or sealed with an engineer's stamp.

The consequence of failure to seal a document is for the engineer to be put in front of the regulatory discipline panel. Only a regulatory discipline panel can make a determination as to whether a document or drawing needed to be sealed.

In an international engineering project there may be a country where the work is originated and a country where the work is executed. The laws of both the originating country and the project destination country must be observed. Further complications may occur when the country where the engineering work is reviewed and approved is not the country where the work is originated or executed. In this case, a high ethical standard must be observed where all relevant laws are applied.

In contract law, the contract law in the country where the contract was signed is generally observed.

The Washington Accord is an agreement that was put in place by a number of international signatories, recognizing their approaches and systems for accrediting university engineering programs as comparable. Signatories to the Washington Accord are Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, India, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.

A Washington Accord degree does not confer a licence to practice engineering. Licences to practice engineering are granted by government or independent bodies that are legislated to confer a licence.

In certain jurisdictions engineering laws are weak. The following countries have weak laws surrounding engineering:

• The United Kingdom where only specific safety related tasks require a registered engineer
• France is not a member of the Washington Accord. The practice of engineering is neither controlled nor regulated by French law
• In Germany the term 'engineer' is an academic title and there are no licences.

Weak engineering law can cause a variety of problems regarding public safety. The safety culture of an organization of practitioners is often dictated by ethics clauses in engineering law. Safety culture is defeated by a culture of concealment which is countered by laws that require engineering hazards to be reported to management or an appropriate authority. If there is no engineering law or weak engineering law there is no control of safety culture afforded by the law. The engineering profession was developed, in North America, to prevent certain problems and behaviours observed in the application of science in the public interest to safeguard life and public welfare. Laws to prevent managers at engineering firms from pushing engineers to make unsafe decisions for financial reasons or to meet a schedule can make countries safer places to live.

Engineering must be conducted in an orderly and ethical manner where all appropriate codes and standards are carefully considered. Orderly consideration is a vital part of any engineering work involving public safety or a contract. Any disorder involved in engineering practice could be termed as reckless or hacking and may endanger the public's trust in the safety or quality of the engineering being practiced. Negligent practice evolves when managerial, accounting, scheduling or legal pressure impinges on the careful consideration of proper engineering practice. Engineers must conduct themselves in a dignified manner and their work must reflect this dignity and a dedication to excellence.

To avoid reckless engineering practice engineers must ensure they have documented process, formalized requirements and formal methods of practice. All documents, drawings and analysis must be up to a high standard and must be well considered. Engineers must use the statutes listed in this article to push back against financial or schedule pressures that may affect public safety related to any engineering work.

It is possible to compare the professions of law and engineering. Just as courts must maintain a certain order or decorum for a fair trial to proceed so too engineering must be conducted in an orderly fashion with a certain formalized method and process. When this order breaks down catastrophes may occur.[49]

Specifically, Ontario engineering law Regulation 941 demands fairness and loyalty to the practitioner’s associates, employer, clients, subordinates and employees; devotion to high ideals of personal honour and professional integrity; co-operation in working with other professionals engaged on a project; courtesy and good faith towards other practitioners; and no malicious attempts to injure the reputation or business of another practitioner.[50]

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