There are some legal restrictions in some places so that apartment buildings and bridges don't get built by the local guy with a backhoe and then collapse.
If they hire a software engineer to build a bridge, they have more problems than the job title.
I don't really follow this argument, since it isn't like all the 'certified' engineers are interchangeable. You would have just as many problems if you hired an electrical engineer to build your bridge as you would if you hired a non-certified software developer to do it. Are people really worried about software developers trying to illegally build building?
I mean, we don't legally limit who can call themselves an engineer in the US, but you still need certifications to actually BUILD something that requires engineering work. That seems like a much more effective control than limiting who can call themselves engineers.
