August 2006

Engineering and Law a Practical Example

By Reece Lumsden

Well, law is a bit like a printing press its kind of neutral, you can make it do anything.

Noam Chomsky, Understanding Power, 2002

Some engineers may perceive the law as something to be feared, to be retreated from, lest we become tainted by its non-technical virtues of imprecision and opinion. Pairing engineering and law is analogous to placing the like poles of two magnets too close together. The natural order of the universe instinctively pushes them apart, for they cannot possibly co-exist alongside each other... or can they? Can engineering skills and engineering thinking actually assist in matters of the law?

I recently put this proposition to the test and was comforted to find that skills I gained as an engineer were quite beneficial in dealing with legal issues. The context for this test was my appearance in small claims court to settle a breach of contract dispute I had with a Career Management Agency, relating to events that had transpired some 12 months prior, in 2005. In brief, I experienced a protracted period of unemployment after transitioning from Australia to the United States. During this time, I hired an agency to assist me with my job search and signed what I thought was a very clear and unambiguous contract. Suffice it to say, the agency did not uphold its end of the contract. After asking the agency for my money back multiple times and exhausting every other available recourse, I found that my only remaining option was to seek remedy through the courts.

As the above Chomsky quote indicates, in going through my legal adventure, I discovered that the law is actually a neutral artifact; it is just there and can be manipulated and shaped by one with knowledge of the law. As members of an honest and ethical profession, we would obviously like to see the law shaped to achieve just and publicly supported outcomes, but we know that's not always the case.

So, what is the law? A simple two-part definition¹ says that law is:

1. A rule of conduct considered to be obligatory and to which is attached some legally recognized punishment or sanction if broken.
    

2. The body of rules known generally as the law comprising the enactments of Parliament or delegated bodies and the common law as developed by the courts.

We can conclude from this definition that the law is a set of rules governing human behavior that, if broken, result in a certain set of consequences. A parallel with engineering can be drawn here as it, just like the law, is based on rule sets that also have consequences when broken.

Having established the connection between engineering and the law, the next logical question is: how did engineering skills help me with my particular case? Without going into too much detail, Ill address first some of the actions I had to take, followed by some of the conclusions I was able to draw from the whole experience with the benefit of hindsight.

In general, small claims cases are very brief affairs, neither side may be represented by a lawyer in the courtroom, and brevity and conciseness are highly prized. Typically, morning and afternoon sessions, each with up to nine cases to be heard, keep the court extremely busy. From the outset of my appearance, it was necessary to clearly establish my case and explain why the court should rule in my favor. I created an executive summary of my case and submitted it for the judge to read while I presented my evidence and opening statement. Utilizing the objectivity of engineering, I was able to present the facts (without insinuating my opinion), while clearly linking my arguments to the law to illustrate the ways it had been broken. In less than 30 minutes, the judge concluded that my claim was justified and ruled in my favor.

Although the decision went my way, the agency still has the right to appeal the judge's initial ruling. But such an appeal would have to be supported by new evidence that would outweigh the overwhelming evidence I provided, which seems unlikely.

After going through the small claims process, and with the benefit of hindsight, I was able to draw a few connections between engineering and the law:

• In their day-to-day work, engineers need to think critically, deal with logic and facts, and present convincing arguments; so, too, is the case in matters of law.

• Engineers thrive on order and structure, which is the basis for law: a set of rules.

• In determining an outcome (particularly in a small claims case), the judges decision is primarily based on the preponderance of evidence and the strength with which the plaintiff and defendants cases are rooted in legal fact. Similarly, engineering decisions are made not only on the strength of data but also on the strength of the argument(s) that accompanies it.

• It's important to prove not only why your case is right but why the other case is wrong. It isn't enough to hope the judge or jury puts all of the pieces together. In engineering, our ideas often compete with others who claim equal validity, hence we need to show why ours are more justified.

And so, after months of preparation, my day (or 30 minutes) as a lawyer was over. While I have no desire to change careers and become a legal eagle (dont think I could handle the funny wigs), I at least know that my training as an engineer has application in assisting greatly with matters that sit well outside of my specialization.

1) M. Barron, Section 1. What is law?, Unit 202 Legal Studies, MBA course notes, pp 1-2, 2004.

Opinions expressed are the author's and do not necessarily reflect the policies or positions of the IEEE or IEEE-USA.

Reece Lumsden is a Project Manager on the 787 Dreamliner Program in Everett, Washington. He graduated with a Bachelors degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from The University of Western Australia (UWA) in 1998; a Masters of Space Studies (MSS) from the International Space University, France in 2000; and recently completed a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) in Technology Management with La Trobe University, Australia. Comments may be submitted to todaysengineer@ieee.org.