Obligation-Conflict Resolution
Case 07-6 (2007) · Sustainable Development—Threatened Species
Professional obligations conflict, and the board applies no fixed rule for which one wins.
Each resolution is recorded as three edges:
competesWith (the tension),
prevailsOver (the obligation the board allowed to win in this case), and
defeasibleUnder (the situation under which the yielding obligation gives way).
The same tension is then traced across comparable cases, where its resolution shifts with context.
Hover any obligation or state to see its definition; click to open it in OntServe.
How this case resolved it
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Engineer A Threatened Species Written Report Inclusion Obligation Instance
prevails over
Engineer A Faithful Agent Within Ethical Limits Developer Client Obligation Instance
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Client Interest vs. Public Interest Conflict Over Environmental Disclosure
- Engineer A Faithful Agent Boundary — Post-Confirmed Finding
Engineer A Wetland Delineation Incidental Post-Contract Environmental Escalation BER 04-8
prevails over
Engineer A Wetland Delineation Client First Confrontation BER 04-8
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- BER 04-8 Post-Service Environmental Violation Discovery
- BER 04-8 Unpermitted Wetland Fill Violation
Engineer A Environmental Stewardship Wetlands Adjacent Assessment Obligation Instance
prevails over
Engineer A Faithful Agent Within Ethical Limits Developer Client Obligation Instance
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Client Interest vs. Public Interest Conflict Over Environmental Disclosure
- Engineer A Faithful Agent Boundary — Post-Confirmed Finding
Engineer A Environmental Principal Expertise-Calibrated Disclosure BER Current Case
prevails over
Engineer A Bridge Sub-Consultant Speculative Finding Written Report Exclusion BER 97-13
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- BER 97-13 Engineer A — Speculation-Based Structural Observation Outside Competence
Engineer A Public Welfare Paramount Threatened Species Omission Obligation Instance
prevails over
Engineer A Faithful Agent Within Ethical Limits Developer Client Obligation Instance
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Client Interest vs. Public Interest Conflict Over Environmental Disclosure
- Engineer A Faithful Agent Boundary — Post-Confirmed Finding
Engineer A Objective Complete Reporting Public Authority Obligation Instance
prevails over
Engineer A Client Verbal Mention Non-Substitution Obligation Instance
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Verbal-Only Threatened Species Advisory Without Written Record
Engineer A Public Welfare Paramount Threatened Species Omission Obligation Instance
prevails over
Engineer A Environmental Principal Faithful Agent Bounded by Public Welfare Current Case
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Client Interest vs. Public Interest Conflict Over Environmental Disclosure
- Engineer A Technically Confirmed Environmental Finding — Omission Instruction
Engineer A Sustainable Development Threatened Species Advocacy Obligation Instance
prevails over
Engineer A Faithful Agent Within Ethical Limits Developer Client Obligation Instance
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Client Interest vs. Public Interest Conflict Over Environmental Disclosure
- Engineer A Faithful Agent Boundary — Post-Confirmed Finding
Engineer A Environmental Principal Objective Completeness Written Report Current Case
prevails over
Engineer A Faithful Agent Within Ethical Limits Developer Client Obligation Instance
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Client Interest vs. Public Interest Conflict Over Environmental Disclosure
- Engineer A Faithful Agent Boundary — Post-Confirmed Finding
Engineer A Bridge Sub-Consultant Field Notes Preservation Non-Alteration BER 97-13
prevails over
Engineer A Bridge Sub-Consultant Speculative Finding Written Report Exclusion BER 97-13
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- BER 97-13 Engineer A — Speculation-Based Structural Observation Outside Competence
Open tensions recorded without a resolution:
Engineer A Bridge Sub-Consultant Corrective Action Follow-Through Monitoring BER 97-13 vs Engineer A Bridge Sub-Consultant Prime Consultant Deference BER 97-13
Engineer A Environmental Principal Client Confidentiality Non-Invocation Disclosure Facilitation Current Case vs Engineer A Threatened Species Written Report Inclusion Obligation Instance
Engineer A Environmental Principal Faithful Agent Bounded by Public Welfare Current Case vs Engineer A Environmental Principal Objective Completeness Written Report Current Case
Engineer A Environmental Principal Faithful Agent Bounded by Public Welfare Current Case vs Engineer A Threatened Species Written Report Inclusion Obligation Instance
Engineer A Faithful Agent Within Ethical Limits Developer Client Obligation Instance vs Engineer A Objective Complete Reporting Public Authority Obligation Instance
What the board concluded
- It was unethical for Engineer A to not include the information about the threat to the bird species in a written report that will be submitted to a public authority that is considering the developer’s proposal.
How comparable cases resolved the same tension
A faithful-agent duty yields to a public-protection obligation. The yielding obligation ("Faithful Agent") recurs across cases; the obligation that overrides it and the context under which it yields differ case by case. This is the case-law move: not a single rule, but a family of context-indexed resolutions.
| Case | Obligation that prevailed | Yielding obligation | Context (defeasibleUnder) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
24-01
Balancing Client Directives and Public...
|
Engineer L Client Budget Pressure Refusal | Engineer L Faithful Agent Boundary | Engineer L Confirmed Risk Without Safeguards; Engineer L Resource Constrained Client |
| Engineer L Client Override Regulatory Report | Engineer L Faithful Agent Boundary | Engineer L Confirmed Risk Without Safeguards; Engineer L Resource Constrained Client | |
|
20-4
Public Health, Safety, and...
|
Engineer B Post-Override Regulatory Reporting | Engineer B Faithful Agent Boundary | MWC Override of Engineers A and B |
| Engineer A Post-Override Regulatory Reporting | Engineer A Faithful Agent Boundary | MWC Override of Engineers A and B | |
|
95-5
Failure To Include Information In...
|
Engineer B Expert Witness Neutrality | Engineer B Faithful Agent Boundary | Engineer B Adversarial Engagement; Engineer B Client Defense Bias |
| Engineer B Complete Technical Reporting | Engineer B Faithful Agent Boundary | Engineer B Adversarial Engagement; Engineer B Client Defense Bias | |
|
04-8
Public Welfare—Client Action Following...
|
Engineer A Wetland Confidentiality Limits | Engineer A Faithful Agent Limits Wetland | Engineer A Confirmed Environmental Risk; Engineer A Faithful Agent Duty Conflict |
| Engineer A Safety Obligation Wetland Fill | Engineer A Faithful Agent Limits Wetland | Engineer A Confirmed Environmental Risk; Engineer A Faithful Agent Duty Conflict |