Jacobs Field Services North America, Inc., Jacobs Engineering Group,Inc. and Jacobs Engineering, Inc. v. Troy Willeford ( 2018 )

Opinion issued June 19, 2018
In The
Court of Appeals
For The
First District of Texas
————————————
NO. 01-17-00551-CV
———————————
JACOBS FIELD SERVICES NORTH AMERICA, INC., JACOBS
ENGINEERING GROUP, INC., AND JACOBS ENGINEERING, INC.,
Appellants
V.
TROY WILLEFORD, Appellee
On Appeal from the 127th District Court
Harris County, Texas
Trial Court Case No. 2015-65988
MEMORANDUM OPINION
In this interlocutory appeal, Jacobs Field Services North America, Inc., Jacobs
Engineering Group, Inc., and Jacobs Engineering, Inc. (collectively “Jacobs”) appeal
from the trial court’s order denying its motion to dismiss Troy Willeford’s claims of
negligence, gross negligence, strict liability, and product defect against them. Jacobs
contends that the trial court erred in denying its motion to dismiss because the
certificate of merit filed with Willeford’s petition fails to meet the requirements of
section 150.002 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. See TEX. CIV.
PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. § 150.002 (West 2011). Jacobs also asserts that its motion
to dismiss was not untimely and that the trial court was permitted to consider
extrinsic evidence in ruling on its motion. We reverse and remand.
Factual and Procedural Background
Willeford sued Jacobs, as well as numerous other entities not parties to this
appeal,1 for injuries he allegedly sustained after responding to the scene of a
workplace accident involving his co-worker, Maurice Ware, at the Far East Coker
Unit (“FECU”) of the ExxonMobil refinery in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.2 Willeford
1
The other named defendants are ExxonMobil Corporation, ExxonMobil Research
& Engineering Company, ExxonMobil Refinery & Supply Company, Siemens
Industry, Inc., AWC, Inc., Flowserve Corporation, Hydradyne, LLC, ISC,
Constructors, LLC, Konecranes, Inc., NorWest Hydraulic & Pneumatic, Inc., Triad
Control Systems, L.L.C., Triad Electric & Controls, Inc., ExxonMobil Global
Services Company, Bayside Engineering Group, Inc., and Vallourec Drilling
Products USA, Inc. f/k/a VAM Drilling USA, Inc.
2
On November 27, 2014, Ware was working at the FECU when the cable from a free
falling bit and drill stem struck him, amputating his legs. After Ware filed suit,
Jacobs moved to dismiss his claims against it under Chapter 150 of the Texas Civil
Practice and Remedies Code. The trial court denied the motion, and Jacobs
appealed. On November 21, 2017, the Fourteenth Court of Appeals issued a
memorandum opinion dismissing the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. Jacobs Field
2
asserted claims against Jacobs for negligence, gross negligence, strict liability, and
product defect.
In his amended petition, under the section entitled “Factual Allegations
Regarding the Role of Each Defendant,” Willeford alleged, in pertinent part:
4.9 Jacobs Engineering, Inc. Upon information and belief,
Jacobs Engineering, Inc. completed the detailed design for the project
to modify the Delayed Coker Unit in February 2007 to reduce the risks
associated with manual unheading of the top heads. The factual support
for this allegation is found in Mosenteen3 exhibit 2, p. 1, ¶ 2, as well as
in Mosenteen’s testimony:
Deposition of Jon Mosenteen:
Q: And was Jacobs Engineering ultimately in charge of the
design of that system in 2007 and ‘8?
A: To the best of my knowledge, Jacobs Engineering was
responsible for the overall design but they had some
subcontractors, I believe who were assisting in the—in the
design aspect of it.
....
4.10 Jacobs Field Services North America, Inc. Upon
information and belief, Jacobs Field Services North America, Inc.
provided programming and HMI configuration and was otherwise
heavily involved in the upgrade for the PLCs in the Far East Coker Unit
in 2013.4 The factual support for this is found in Mosenteen exhibit 5,
Servs., N. Am., Inc. v. Ware, No. 14-17-00543-CV, 2017 WL 5618192 (Tex. App.—
Houston [14th Dist.] Nov. 21, 2017, no pet.). The parties later settled.
3
Mosenteen, an ExxonMobil employee, was the coker operations supervisor in Baton
Rouge at the time of the accident.
4
“PLC,” or Programmable Logic Controller, is a specialized industrial computer
which has been specifically designed to operate reliably in harsh usage
3
pages 60-61 (ExxonMobil Global Services Company procurement
identifying Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. and Jacobs Field Services
North America Inc. as providing requested work) and in Mosenteen’s
testimony:
Deposition of Jon Mosenteen:
A: Page 5 of 7 of what I believe is labeled Exhibit 2,
Question No. 5, Jacobs Engineering sought to have
completed the design programming of the PLC for the
2013 PLC upgrade project.
....
Q: Detail design, what does that mean?
A: Well, the PLC is a series of, as best I can explain it,
a series of yes/no questions and so it’s logic that gets you
to an end solution or an activity or permissi[on] for
something to work. Jacobs provided that programming,
provided that service to be able to do that project.
Q: Okay. Did Jacobs actually come on-site?
A: I believe they did.
Q: And so essentially, in Exxon’s mind, Jacobs was
ultimately responsible for the correct programming of the
PLC and HMI, fair?
A: For the correct implementation of the programming,
yes, sir.
environments and conditions, such as refineries and manufacturing.
“Programming” a PLC means writing the software that controls the way the PLC
behaves. “HMI,” or Human Machine Interface, is the graphical user interface for
the PLC which allows the PLC to communicate with the operator. “Configuring”
an HMI means using a graphical computer programming language to create the
HMI.
4
4.11 Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. Upon information and
belief, Jacobs Engineering, Group, Inc. provided programming and
HMI configuration and was otherwise heavily involved in the upgrade
for the PLCs in the Far East Coker Unit in 2013.
The ExxonMobil procurement document referenced in Willeford’s amended petition
identifies Jacobs’s scope of work as follows:
WORK REQUESTED: PROVIDE PROGRAMMING AND HMI
CONFIGURATION FOR THE NEW UPGRADED PLC[]S FOR THE
FAR EAST COKER CUTTING CONSOLES. FOUR NEW PLC[]S
AND HMI[]S WILL BE INSTALLED ONE FOR EACH DRUM,
ALSO SITE ACCEPTANCE AND START UP SERVICES WILL BE
PROVIDED.5 PROVIDE INTOOLS WIRING.
To his amended petition, Willeford attached a certificate of merit affidavit of
Gregg S. Perkin, a registered professional engineer in the field of mechanical
engineering. A copy of Perkin’s curriculum vitae and a list of the materials he
reviewed in preparing the certificate were attached to his affidavit.
In his affidavit, Perkin stated that he has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical
Engineering and that he is a registered professional engineer in the field of
mechanical engineering in the State of Texas. Perkin’s affidavit further stated, in
relevant part:
In mid-1986, I began my work as an independent professional
Mechanical Engineering consultant.
5
The site acceptance service refers to the development of site acceptance test
procedures used during site acceptance testing performed by ExxonMobil. Jacobs
was not responsible for performing the site acceptance test.
5
Since 1995, I have been employed by [Engineering Partners
International] as an independent engineering consultant and
Professional Engineer in the areas of detailed safety analysis of highly
complex process units and systems within the processing industries and
risk assessment for various industries. In these regards, and over the
course of my professional career, I have actively worked in the areas of
equipment design, manufacture, fabrication, assembly, construction,
testing, operation, maintenance and retrofitting.
As one (1) of EPI’s Principal Engineers, I have often been actively
engaged in providing design engineering and independent engineering
reviews and analysis. I have been independently retained to conduct
product design analysis, design equipment, failure analysis, risk and
hazard analysis, and provide other independent consulting services
related to mechanical equipment and systems.
....
Based on my education and professional experience, I have personal
knowledge of the acceptable standards for the practice of providing
design engineering services in the State of Louisiana which was the task
to be performed by the engineering firm(s) referenced herein for
ExxonMobil, at the Baton Rouge Refinery where Mr. Ware was severly
[sic] injured.
Jacobs filed a motion to dismiss Willeford’s claims on the basis that Perkin’s
certificate of merit affidavit failed to meet the requirements of section 150.002 of
the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. Specifically, Jacobs argued that
Perkin’s affidavit failed to (1) satisfy the “knowledge” requirement; (2) set forth the
alleged negligence, errors, or omissions for each defendant; and (3) set forth the
factual basis for each such claim. The trial court denied Jacobs’s motion, and Jacobs
filed this interlocutory appeal.
6
Standard of Review
An order granting or denying a motion to dismiss for failure to file a certificate
of merit is immediately appealable. TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN.
§ 150.002(f) (West 2011). We review a trial court’s order denying a motion to
dismiss for abuse of discretion. CBM Eng’rs, Inc. v. Tellepsen Builders, L.P., 403
S.W.3d 339, 342 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2013, pet. denied). A trial court
abuses its discretion when it acts arbitrarily or unreasonably, without reference to
any guiding rules and principles. Id.; see Downer v. Aquamarine Operators, Inc.,
701 S.W.2d 238, 241–42 (Tex. 1985). A trial court also abuses its discretion if it
fails to analyze or apply the law correctly. Dunham Eng’g, Inc. v. Sherwin-Williams
Co., 404 S.W.3d 785, 789 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2013, no pet.). As the
party complaining of an abuse of discretion, Jacobs has the burden of bringing forth
a record showing such abuse. See Siemens Energy, Inc. v. Nat’l Union Fire Ins. Co.,
No. 14-13-00863-CV, 2014 WL 2531577, at *2 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.]
June 3, 2014, pet. denied) (mem. op.).
Applicable Law
Chapter 150 of the Civil Practice and Remedies Code governs suits filed
against certain licensed professionals, including engineers. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. &
7
REM. CODE ANN. § 150.001(1-a) (West Supp. 2017).6 Section 150.002 provides, in
relevant part:
(a) In any action . . . for damages arising out of the provision of
professional services by a licensed or registered professional, the
plaintiff shall be required to file with the complaint an affidavit of a
third-party . . . licensed professional engineer . . . who:
(1) is competent to testify;
(2) holds the same professional license or registration as the
defendant; and
(3) is knowledgeable in the area of practice of the defendant and
offers testimony based on the person’s:
(A) knowledge;
(B) skill;
(C) experience;
(D) education;
(E) training; and
(F) practice.
(b) The affidavit shall set forth specifically for each theory of recovery for
which damages are sought, the negligence, if any, or other action, error,
or omission of the licensed or registered professional in providing the
professional service, including any error or omission in providing
6
Willeford filed his original petition on November 3, 2015. Because the underlying
lawsuit was filed after September 1, 2009, the pertinent version of section 150.002
is the 2009 amended version. See Act of May 29, 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., ch. 789,
§ 2, 2009 Tex. Gen. Laws 1991, 1992 (codified at TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE
§ 150.002).
8
advice, judgment, opinion, or a similar professional skill claimed to
exist and the factual basis for each such claim. The third-party . . .
licensed professional engineer . . . shall be licensed or registered in this
state and actively engaged in the practice of . . . engineering . . . .
...
(e) The plaintiff’s failure to file the affidavit in accordance with this section
shall result in dismissal of the complaint against the defendant. This
dismissal may be with prejudice.
(f) An order granting or denying a motion for dismissal is immediately
appealable as an interlocutory order.
Id. § 150.002.
Analysis
Before we consider whether Perkin’s certificate of merit affidavit complies
with section 150.002, we address several threshold issues raised by the parties in
their briefs.
Applicability of Section 150.002
In his brief on appeal, Willeford contends that although he filed a certificate
of merit affidavit with his petition, he did so out of an abundance of caution and his
filing does not waive his argument that section 150.002 does not apply to this case.
In particular, he argues that Jacobs failed to demonstrate to the trial court that it is a
“licensed or registered professional,” or that its conduct giving rise to Willeford’s
claims against Jacobs was committed in the course of “provi[ding a] professional
service.” Id. at §150.002(a).
9
In his response to Jacobs’s motion to dismiss, Willeford argued that Perkin’s
certificate of merit complies with section 150.002 because it satisfies the knowledge
requirement and adequately sets forth the factual bases for Willeford’s claims.7
Willeford did not argue to the trial court that the statute does not apply to this case.8
Instead, he challenges the applicability of the statute for the first time on appeal.
To preserve a complaint for appellate review, the record must demonstrate
that the complaining party made the complaint to the trial court by timely request,
objection, or motion, stating with sufficient specificity the grounds for the requested
ruling. See TEX. R. APP. P. 33.1(a)(1)(A). Because Willeford did not raise this
argument in the trial court, he has not preserved this issue for our review. See E.F.
Hutton & Co. v. Youngblood, 741 S.W.2d 363, 364 (Tex. 1987) (concluding that
argument that Deceptive Trade Practices Act was inapplicable to securities
transactions was never presented to trial court and was therefore waived); State v.
Wilson, 490 S.W.3d 610, 622–23 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2016, no pet.)
(concluding that where State did not present four of its five public policy arguments
7
In his response, Willeford referred to Jacobs as a licensed engineering firm and
stated that Ҥ 150.002 sets forth a minimal threshold requirement that a plaintiff
must satisfy when suing a licensed engineer for an action that arises out of the
provision of professional services.”
8
On appeal, Willeford acknowledges that “[t]he record does not indicate that the trial
court considered the applicability of CPRC § 150.002 in denying Jacobs’ motion to
dismiss.”
10
to trial court, it had not preserved those complaints for appellate review); Robertson
Cty. v. Wymola, 17 S.W.3d 334, 344 (Tex. App.—Austin 2000, pet. denied)
(concluding county’s claim that it was immune from post-judgment interest not
raised at trial court level may not be raised for first time on appeal).
Timeliness of Jacobs’s Motion to Dismiss
Willeford argues that the trial court did not err in denying Jacobs’s motion to
dismiss because the motion was untimely. 9 Jacobs contends that its motion to
dismiss was not untimely and that, even if it was, the trial court could not have
properly denied Jacobs’s motion to dismiss on this ground.10
Section 150.002 does not impose a deadline to move for dismissal. See TEX.
CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE § 150.002. “When a statute does not contain a deadline,
the mere fact that a defendant waits to file a motion to dismiss is insufficient to
establish waiver.” Ustanik v. Nortex Found. Designs, Inc., 320 S.W.3d 409, 413
(Tex. App.—Waco 2010, pet. denied) (citing Jernigan v. Langley, 111 S.W.3d 153,
157 (Tex. 2003)). Willeford concedes that section 150.002 does not impose a
deadline. Nevertheless, he argues, Jacobs’s filing of its motion approximately
9
In a footnote in his response to Jacobs’s motion, Willeford similarly asserted that
“[i]t seems that Jacobs’ motion, at this stage of the litigation, is tardy and defeats
the initial gatekeeping function intended by the statute.”
10
The trial court’s order does not state the basis on which it denied Jacobs’s motion
to dismiss.
11
six-and-a-half months after Willeford filed his amended petition and after significant
discovery had taken place defeats the purpose of the statute and provided the trial
court with a sufficient basis upon which to deny Jacobs’s motion. Willeford’s
argument is unavailing.
In Crosstex Energy Services, L.P. v. Pro Plus, Inc., Crosstex, a natural gas
compression station owner hired Pro Plus, a licensed professional engineering firm,
as the principal contractor to construct a compression station. See 430 S.W.3d 384,
387 (Tex. 2014). Following a massive fire that caused $10 million in property
damage, Crosstex sued Pro Plus for negligence, negligent misrepresentation, breach
of implied and express warranty, and breach of contract. See id.
After the statute of limitations had run on Crosstex’s negligence claims, and
more than seven months after Crosstex had filed its petition, Pro Plus moved to
dismiss Crosstex’s claims for failure to attach a certificate of merit to its original
petition as required by section 150.002. See id. Crosstex responded that Pro Plus
had waived its right to dismissal by, among other things, substantially invoking the
judicial process through participating in discovery. See id. at 387, 394.
Noting that “[w]aiver is primarily a function of intent,” the Texas Supreme
Court stated that “[t]o find waiver through conduct, such intent ‘must be clearly
demonstrated by the surrounding facts and circumstances.’” Id. at 393–94 (“We will
not find waiver where a person ‘says or does nothing inconsistent with an intent to
12
rely upon such right.’”). The Court then concluded that Pro Plus’s participation in
discovery, specifically, the exchange of 11,000 pages of written discovery between
the parties, did not demonstrate an intent to waive the right to dismiss under
subsection 150.002(e). Id. at 394–95 (“Quite simply, ‘[a]ttempting to learn more
about the case in which one is a party does not demonstrate an intent to waive the
right to move for dismissal.’”). Other courts have similarly refused to find waiver
based upon substantially longer delays than the one here. See, e.g., Found.
Assessment, Inc. v. O’Connor, 426 S.W.3d 827, 833–34 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth
2014, pet. denied) (finding engineer defendants’ twenty-two month delay and
participation in minimal discovery did not deny them their right to dismissal under
section 105.002, noting “we cannot imply waiver based only on delay when the
legislature did not provide a deadline for filing a motion to dismiss under section
150.002”); Ustanik, 320 S.W.3d at 413–14 (concluding that although defendant
engineers waited nearly two years and five months to file motion to dismiss,
participated in discovery, and filed motions for summary judgment, conduct did not
evidence intent to waive right to assert dismissal under section 105.002); DLB
Architects, P.C. v. Weaver, 305 S.W.3d 407, 411 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2010, pet
denied) (holding defendant architects were not precluded from seeking dismissal
under section 105.002 even though they had participated in litigation process and
waited more than one year after they were sued to file motion to dismiss). We
13
conclude that the trial court could not have properly denied Jacob’s motion to
dismiss on this ground.
Compliance with Section 150.002(a)(3)
Jacobs argues that Perkin’s certificate of merit affidavit fails to comply with
section 150.002(a)(3) because it does not demonstrate that Perkin is knowledgeable
in Jacobs’s area of practice at issue in this litigation. Specifically, Jacobs argues that
nothing in Perkin’s certificate of merit, or elsewhere in the record, demonstrates that
Perkin is knowledgeable about software engineering or computer programming.
Jacobs relies on the Texas Supreme Court’s recent decision in Levinson Alcoser
Associates, L.P. v. El Pistolόn II, Ltd., 513 S.W.3d 487 (Tex. 2017) in support of its
argument.
In Levinson, El Pistolόn hired Levinson (the “architects”) to design and
oversee the construction of a commercial retail project. See id. at 489. Disappointed
with the architects’ services, El Pistolόn sued Levinson, alleging breach of contract
and negligence in the project’s design and development. Id. El Pistolόn filed a
certificate of merit affidavit of Gary Payne, a third-party licensed architect, with its
original petition. Id.
The architects moved to dismiss El Pistolόn’s suit on the grounds that Payne’s
affidavit did not satisfy the knowledge or factual basis requirements of section
150.002. See id. 489–90. The trial court denied the motion to dismiss and the
14
architects appealed. The court of appeals affirmed the portion of the trial court’s
order denying dismissal of El Pistolόn’s negligence claim, concluding that Payne’s
affidavit satisfied both the statute’s knowledge and factual basis requirements as to
that claim.11 See id. at 490. The architects appealed the decision, arguing that
Payne’s affidavit was insufficient because Payne was not properly qualified under
the statute to give a professional opinion. See id. at 491.
The Texas Supreme Court noted that, under section 150.002, a third-party
professional is qualified to render a certificate of merit if he (1) holds the same
professional license or registration as the defendant; (2) is licensed or registered in
the state; (3) is actively engaged in the practice; and (4) is knowledgeable in the
defendant’s area of practice. Id. at 492. The Court concluded that Payne’s affidavit
satisfied the first three statutory factors under section 150.002—it showed that he
was a professional architect, he was registered to practice in Texas, and he was
actively engaged in the practice of architecture—but that the affidavit did not
provide any information about Payne’s knowledge of Levinson’s area of practice.
See id.
11
The court reversed the trial court’s order as to the contract claim, concluding that
Payne’s affidavit was deficient as to that claim, and it remanded for the trial court
to determine whether the contract claim should be dismissed with or without
prejudice. Levinson Alcoser Assocs., L.P. v. El Pistolόn II, Ltd., 513 S.W.3d 487,
490 (Tex. 2017).
15
The Court explained that “the statute’s knowledge requirement is not
synonymous with the expert’s licensure or active engagement in the practice; it
requires some additional explication or evidence reflecting the expert’s familiarity
or experience with the practice area at issue in the litigation.” Id. at 494. The Court
agreed that such knowledge may be inferred from sources in the record other than
the expert’s affidavit, and that the certificate of merit was not deficient merely
because it failed to show on its face that Payne possessed knowledge of the
architects’ area of practice. See id. at 493–94. It noted, however, that the court of
appeals’ opinion did not identify a source for such an inference other than Payne’s
affidavit, and that El Pistolόn did not point to “anything in the record from which to
infer Payne’s knowledge or background in the design of shopping centers or other
similar commercial construction.” Id. at 493. “Because nothing exists in Payne’s
affidavit from which to draw an inference that Payne possessed knowledge of the
defendants’ area of practice beyond the generalized knowledge associated with
holding the same license, we conclude that Payne has not shown himself qualified
to render the certificate of merit.” Id. at 494.
Jacobs contends that, like El Pistolόn, Willeford impermissibly attempts to
satisfy section 150.002(a)(3)’s knowledge requirement by relying on Perkin’s
averments in his certificate of merit that he is a registered professional engineer in
the State of Texas and has been actively engaged in providing engineering services
16
since 1995. See id. (explaining that “court of appeals’ interpretation conflates the
knowledge requirement with the requirement that the third-party expert hold the
same professional license or registration as the defendant”). Jacobs argues that,
under Levinson, Perkin’s general knowledge of Jacobs’s broad practice area, i.e.,
engineering, is insufficient to qualify him to render a certificate of merit in this case.
Willeford argues that Levinson is distinguishable because the expert in
Levinson provided no information about his experience, training, practice,
qualifications, or knowledge, other than the fact that he was a licensed architect. In
contrast, he argues, Perkin states in his certificate of merit that “he has been engaged
as an engineer in the areas of detailed safety analysis of highly complex process
units, including the areas of equipment design, manufacture, fabrication, assembly,
construction, testing, operation, maintenance and retrofitting.” Willeford also points
out that Perkin “describes how he has ‘almost 50 years of experience in rotary
drilling operations,’ his clientele includes energy and related industries and the oil
and gas industry,” and that Perkin states “based on my education and professional
experience, I have personal knowledge of the acceptable standards for the practice
of providing design engineering services in the State of Louisiana which was the
task to be performed by the engineering firm(s) referenced herein for ExxonMobil,
at the Baton Rouge Refinery, where Mr. Ware was severly [sic] injured.” Willeford
17
argues that Dunham Engineering, rather than Levinson, is more on point with this
case.
In Dunham Engineering, the City of Lake Jackson hired Dunham
Engineering, Inc. (“DEI”) to design and produce engineering plans and
specifications, and a draft set of contract documents for the repainting and
rehabilitation of a 500,000 gallon water tower. See id. at 788. The City also hired
DEI to advertise for contractor bids on, and assist the City in reviewing the bids and
selecting the winning bid for, the project. Id.
After DEI turned down Sherwin-Williams’s request to substitute its paint
products for the paint products DEI had specified because DEI did not consider
Sherwin-Williams’s products to be “equal,” Sherwin-Williams sued DEI, asserting
claims of intentional interference with prospective business relationships, business
disparagement, and product disparagement. See id. To its original petition,
Sherwin-Williams attached a certificate of merit affidavit of James O’Connor, a
licensed professional civil engineer and engineering professor. Id. DEI moved to
dismiss Sherwin-Williams’s suit, arguing that its certificate of merit affidavit failed
to meet the requirements of section 150.002. Id. at 789. The trial court denied DEI’s
motion, and DEI appealed. Id.
The court of appeals rejected as an overly narrow construction DEI’s
argument that O’Connor’s certificate of merit affidavit was insufficient because it
18
did not demonstrate that he was knowledgeable in “professional engineering services
related to water storage tanks and corrosion control.” See id. at 794. “[W]hat DEI
proposes is that section 150.002(a)(3) requires that we evaluate certificates of merit
on the basis of engineering specialties. However, the plain language of . . . section
150.002(a)(3) . . . specifically states only that the engineer opining in the certificate
of merit be ‘knowledgeable in the area of practice of the defendant.’” Id.
The court noted that O’Connor’s certificate indicated that he held a Ph.D. in
civil engineering, was licensed by the State of Texas as a professional civil engineer,
served as a professor in project management within the civil engineering department
at the University of Texas, and that, through his practice, research, and teaching, he
was familiar with the legal requirements and industry customs regarding competitive
bidding on public works projects. Id. at 795. Noting that DEI was involved in the
preparation and direction of plans and specifications for a Texas public works
project, the court concluded that the trial court had not abused its discretion in
determining that O’Connor was knowledgeable in DEI’s area of practice. See id.
Jacobs argues that Dunham Engineering does not support Willeford’s position
because, unlike the defendant there, Jacobs does not contend that Perkin lacks
knowledge of an engineering “specialty.” For example, Jacobs contends, it does not
assert that Perkin lacks knowledge of computer programming and software
engineering for control of industrial machinery in oil refineries, as opposed to
19
industrial machinery in other applications. Rather, it argues that “Perkin lacks
knowledge of computer programming and software engineering for control of
industrial machinery, period.”
In his amended petition, Willeford alleges that Jacobs “provided
programming and HMI configuration” for the four new upgraded PLCs in the Far
East Coker Unit, and that it completed the detail design for the project. He further
alleges that Jacobs “engaged in defective work related to designing, wiring,
installing, constructing, and programming the coker unit’s PLCs, HMI’s load cells,
and failed to ensure the functionality of its work and the unit as a whole following
its work.”
In support of his allegations, Willeford relies on Mosenteen’s deposition
testimony and the ExxonMobil procurement document identifying Jacobs’s scope
of work on the project. Mosenteen testified that Jacobs was responsible for the
programming of the PLCs and HMI, and that “detail design” refers to the design
and development of the logic underlying the software program Jacobs wrote for the
upgraded PLCs. Similarly, the procurement document identifying Jacobs’s scope
of work on the project states that Jacobs was to “provide programming and HMI
configuration for the new upgraded PLCs for the Far East Coker Cutting Consoles,”
and that site acceptance and start up services and intools wiring would be provided.
20
There is nothing in Perkin’s certificate of merit, or elsewhere in the record,
showing that Perkin is knowledgeable about computer programming or software
engineering for control of industrial machinery, Jacobs’s practice area at issue.
Notably, Perkin states, “I am informed that the PLC and/or HMI providing all/or
some of this information to a DCSU [Delayed Coker System Unit] Operator was not
fully functioning.” There is no mention in the certificate of designing, wiring,
installing, constructing or programming PLCs, HMIs, or load cells, nor is there any
mention of acceptance testing of PLCs or HMIs.12 Neither Perkin’s background nor
his active practice reflects knowledge, experience, education, or training in computer
programming, software engineering, PLC programming, HMI configuration, or site
acceptance testing of PLCS and HMIs. Instead, Perkin’s certificate shows that he is
a mechanical engineer with experience in, and familiarity with, mechanical systems,
in particular, equipment design, manufacture, fabrication, assembly, construction,
testing, operation, maintenance, and retrofitting.13
12
Perkin does not identify the PLC software program written by Jacobs,
ExxonMobil’s specifications for that program, or the site acceptance test procedures
written by Jacobs for the upgraded PLCs and HMIs as being among the materials
he reviewed in rendering his certificate of merit. See M-E Eng’rs, Inc. v. City of
Temple, 365 S.W.3d 497, 504 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2012, pet. denied)
(noting that certificate of merit reflected that, in forming his opinions, expert had
read project specifications and drawings, assessed whether HVAC system complied
with those documents, and determined, based on his training and experience,
whether HVAC system, as actually installed, functioned properly as part of project).
13
Perkin summarizes his minimal expectations for the DSCU drilling operations,
based on his “almost fifty years of experience in rotary drilling operations,” in
21
Willeford argues that Jacobs mischaracterizes his claims as claims about
coding or software design. He asserts that his claims center on the failure to
implement certain safety features, mechanical design flaws, and the failure to
conduct adequate site acceptance testing and other testing of the mechanical
components of the PLC and HMI. However, the record shows that these duties were
not within Jacobs’s scope of work on the project. To its motion to dismiss, Jacobs
attached the affidavit of Franz Rosenthal, an instrument engineer with ExxonMobil
Chemical Corporation, who was responsible for the Far East Coker Unit upgrade in
2013. Rosenthal averred, in pertinent part:
2. While at ExxonMobil, we tested any new equipment installed at
the Far East Coker unit for functionality to ensure it met
ExxonMobil’s design, specifications, and performance criteria.
Jacobs was responsible for developing the site acceptance test
procedures. As part of the installation and verification process,
ExxonMobil would perform a site acceptance test (SAT).
3. ExxonMobil hired Jacobs to provide input/output list and the
programming for the programmable logic controllers (PLCs) and
the human machine interface (HMI) for the 2013 Far East Coker
unit cutting consoles upgrade (FECU). [] PLCs are configurable
mini-computers that usually have electrical signals wired into
them and are used to control processes. The PLC runs software
as a personal computer. Jacobs developed and installed the
eleven bullet points in his certificate of merit. These points, however, address
mechanical design and procedural issues, none of which are related to the activities
within Jacobs’s scope of work. See id. at 503 (concluding that trial court could have
considered, among other facts, expert’s descriptions and analysis of eleven sets of
identified problems in building’s HVAC system that he attributed to defendant
engineer).
22
program used in the PLCs for FECU, using a language specific
for that purpose.
4. Site acceptance services means to provide support services to
ExxonMobil during site acceptance testing that was performed
by ExxonMobil. Jacobs was not specifically contracted to
perform the site acceptance test on the 2013 FECU. Jacobs was
responsible for ensuring the PLCs operated per ExxonMobil’s
design and performance criteria. The PLCs complied with all of
ExxonMobil’s design and performance standards. ExxonMobil
personnel performed the SAT and Jacobs was there primarily in
an advisory capacity if issues arose. The SAT was successfully
completed to ExxonMobil’s satisfaction.
Thus, while its duties included providing site acceptance services, including
developing the procedures for site acceptance testing, Jacobs did not conduct site
acceptance testing or testing of other equipment at the FECU. ExxonMobil did.
Willeford also asserts that Jacobs’s claim that a software engineer is necessary
to render a certificate of merit in this case fails as a matter of law. It is true that a
third-party expert need not practice in the same practice area at issue to be
knowledgeable to render an opinion under the statute. See Levinson, 513 S.W.3d at
492–93; Gaertner v. Langhoff, 509 S.W.3d 392, 397 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st
Dist.] 2014, no pet.). However, Jacobs does not make this argument. Rather, it
contends that Perkin does not satisfy the “knowledge” requirement because there is
nothing in the record indicating that Perkin is knowledgeable in Jacobs’s specific
area of practice. Compare Levinson, 513 S.W.3d at 493 (concluding that expert had
not shown himself qualified to render certificate of merit where there was nothing
23
in record from which court could infer expert’s knowledge or background in
defendant architects’ practice area, i.e. design of shopping centers or other similar
commercial construction), with Melden & Hunt, Inc. v. East Rio Hondo Water
Supply Co., 520 S.W.3d 887, 891 (Tex. 2017) (agreeing with court of appeals that
expert’s averments of many years of experience “in master planning, detailed design
and construction management,” and about his “education and experience in the
design and analysis of water treatment plants, including clarifiers, pumps, filters,
piping, controls, and chemical fees systems” were factual statements supporting
conclusion that expert was knowledgeable in defendant engineer’s practice area),
and Dunham Eng’g, Inc., 404 S.W.3d at 795 (concluding section 150.002(a)(3) was
satisfied where expert’s affidavit indicated that through practice, research, and
teaching, he was familiar with legal requirements and industry customs regarding
competitive bidding on public works projects like those at issue), and M–E Eng’rs,
Inc. v. City of Temple, 365 S.W.3d 497, 501, 504 (concluding district court did not
abuse its discretion in determining that expert was knowledgeable in defendant
engineer’s practice area where expert averred in his certificate that he practiced in
same design of heating, ventilating, air conditioning systems, and plumbing systems
as defendant, and other facts tended to confirm expert’s knowledge such as his
descriptions and analysis of eleven sets of identified problems in building’s HVAC
system).
24
Willeford’s argument is essentially that because the system failed, every
component of the system failed. That may or may not be true, but Jacobs has broken
its component of the system out of the system and challenged Willeford to show in
what particular way it failed. The first step Willeford must take is to satisfy the
requirements of section 150.002 with a certificate of merit which demonstrates that
the expert called upon to criticize the computer programming and installation is
qualified to do so. There is nothing in Perkin’s curriculum vitae or his affidavit
showing that he possesses knowledge regarding the role that computer programming
played in the system’s alleged failure. While Perkins is, based on his certificate of
merit, qualified to review and criticize the coordination, design, and functioning of
complex refinery systems, there is nothing in the record which indicates his expertise
in the area of computer programing, design, or installation. The certificate of merit
does not meet the standards of section 150.002 with regard to Jacobs.
Because nothing exists in Perkin’s certificate of merit affidavit, or elsewhere
in the record, indicating that Perkin possesses knowledge of Jacobs’s practice area,
Perkin has not shown himself qualified to render the certificate of merit. The trial
court erred in denying Jacobs’s motion to dismiss. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM.
25
CODE ANN. § 150.002(e) (requiring dismissal when plaintiff fails to file compliant
affidavit). Accordingly, we sustain Jacobs’s issue.14
Conclusion
We reverse the trial court’s order denying Jacobs’s motion to dismiss, and we
remand the cause to the trial court to determine whether the dismissal of Willeford’s
claims shall be with or without prejudice. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN.
§ 150.002(e) (providing that dismissal based on plaintiff’s failure to file certificate
of merit in accordance with statute “may be with prejudice”).
Russell Lloyd
Justice
Panel consists of Justices Bland, Lloyd, and Caughey.
14
In light of our disposition, we need not reach Jacobs’s issues regarding whether
Perkin’s certificate of merit specifically addresses Jacobs and its conduct, as
required by section 150.002(b), or whether the trial court was permitted to consider
the affidavit of Jacob’s engineering expert, Richard Hooper, attached to its motion
to dismiss.
26