PMFJI...
Steve McConnell's latest book, After the Gold Rush, covers a bit about this topic. His argument supports software "engineers" who would be licensed/liable for any software that they sign off on as being ready for release. He compares that to the engineer who approves a bridge for opening.
It's a pretty quick read, and covers some of the same ground this thread has begun covering.
Marty
Marty Smith, CSQE