PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE IN SAFETY-RELATED SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

If a software failure leads to injury or death, legal liability may fall on manufacturers, designers and software engineers. Allegations of negligence may result, and a demonstration of competence is likely to be important in a defence of such allegations. In the absence of authoritative case law, we examine other fields of engineering to obtain an indication as to how, in an action of negligence, the civil courts might measure the competence and behaviour of software engineers in producing safety-related software. We consider the implications of standards and codes of practice, responsibilities of client and contractor, budgetary implications, the status of experts, and the distinction between pioneering design and negligent behaviour. This paper is, however, intended for an engineering readership and legal detail is kept to a minimum.