The law is the “low bar.” It’s up to you whether you do more than required, but it comes with risk…

The complexity and risks associated with the profession of engineering means that the number of statutes and regulations that goes with it is mind boggling.

You're not expected to know them all, you simply can't, but you are required to have a working knowledge of those that are directly related to your specialisation and area of practice.

From there, you need to supplement that working knowledge with the detailed legal and regulatory knowledge provided by the in-house counsel and their legal team as well as the external legal experts they take advice from.

In-house lawyers are often like your family doctor or general practitioner (GP). They assess your symptoms and, where possible, confirm a diagnosis and development a treatment plan. If they can't be definitive, they'll usually refer you on to a specialist who will take it from there. Unlike GPs, specialists deal in one particular area of medicine only and become expert because of the number of cases they see over their career and their on-going professional development.

Same goes for lawyers. If the in-house team can provide you with all the legal advice you need, you're good to go. If not, they will refer the matter to an external law firm that specialises in that particular field.

It pays as a young (or mature) professional to develop strong working relationships with the in-house and external legal teams. They can become some of the best business advisers going around because of their rounded legal and commercial knowledge and they know what it takes to keep you out of trouble based on deep experience.

The downside of legal advice is that it's nearly always conservative. To avoid all risk, of course, you should do precisely - nothing. But in real world, where you need to design and build and commission something, you need to find a way through. Opposing teams often become conflicted over insurances and indemnities but if you assess the real risk based on the nature of the work that is being performed, there is generally a work around available.

The other risk to engineers when working with the law is doing too much. Sounds counter-intuitive doesn't it? Doing too much too comply. You would think there should be a gold star or an elephant star or public recognition for doing far more than what the law requires.

In fact, the more you do above and beyond what the law requires, the more you could be held to that standard if you ever chose to do less again. And that could get you in to trouble with the law.

So, the thing to do is always keep it simple. Know what the law and regulations require and then be compliant.

But don't take our word for it, make sure you get your own legal advice!

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