Chapter 8.

Engineers and the Law

EM 628 Engineering Management Fall Semester 2011 Randolph Mitre

Engineers and the Law

The Panamanian law is based in the Colombian law of the nineteen centuries, because at this time they are a department of these country. Both law use the antique roman law, it is positive influences by the catholic church. At 1904 Panama had its first constitution, and The country at least have four complete change in the constitution until now. The last one was at 1972. Our constitution have 313 articles.

Basic Types of Law

Constitution

Internation treaty

Codes (Law)

Goverment decree

Resolute

Basic Types of Law

Constitutional Law Constitutional law sets up the basis for the operation of a government, including its powers and its limitations; a constitution establishes the framework for the governments political structure. In Panama it is the same thing for example the article 19 say anyone have any privilege or discrimination by race, born, social class, gender, religion or political ideas. Constitutional law affects the engineer in a number of ways. In the article 40 say All people is free to develop any professional work and should achive the rules that the law have...

Law
law are the codes to govern all of banches of rights. The law have some code how: civil, mining, commercial, penal, family, management, etc. In concept the people present the code in front the National par lament to approve or not a new law or modification The 41 law is the Environmental law that put the framework of all of relate with how to present the engineer have to present a new project to be approval in the environment aspect.

Government Decree
It is other level of our law and it is used by the general government to regulate the administrative thing, Some example that this kind of law that affect the engineering are: Decree 58 at regulate the processes of making the environmental studies, Decree 71 that regulate the wages of the farm workers, etc.

The Panamanian Court System

We use the word court here to mean a tribunal established by a government to administer justice. A courts primary function is to decide controversies between two parties called litigants. The final decision is called a judgment. We used a hierarchy where we can find judges, superior tribunal and Supreme Court.

Judges
Circuit Judges

Municipial Judges
Mayor

Superior Tribunal and Supreme Court

They are the first instancie to solve appeals. It is confrom by areas like civil, comercial, labor, etc. The supreme court is the last instancie that the litigant have to resolve the conflict that begin in the judges.

Geografic Jurisdiction
Panama are divide in four judicial district. The District 1 include Panama, Colon and Darien Providence. The District 2 include Cocle, Veraguas Providence. The District 3 include Chiriqui and Bocas del Toro Providences. The District 4 include Herrera and Los Santos Providences.

Intellectual Property
One of the specialized areas of the law that may involve the engineer is the area of rights to and protection of intellectual property. The Panamanian Constitution gives the power in the article 49 All author, artist, inventor has the exclusive property of his own work or invention, during the time and for of the law establish.

Arbitration
Arbitration here the most common use is in the dispute between the employer and the employee in the labor office. Typically the worker request at this office the calculate his right when some company decide fair them.