Ethics: conflicts of interest

Professional ethics, including the management of conflicts of interest, is attracting increased interest worldwide from the public, regulators, standard setters and the profession. Failure to demonstrate ethical behaviour, including responding appropriately to conflict of interest situations, may erode public trust in the accounting profession.

Many professional accountants believe they can identify, evaluate and address a conflict of interest when one arises. However, many complaints received by CA ANZ involve conflicts that are identifiable to a neutral observer. In these cases, the conflict of interest can often be attributed to a loss of perspective, rationalising the conflict or an inability to identify a conflict of interest due to familiarity with a client or stakeholder. This tells us that professional accountants can develop a ‘blind spot’ when it comes to identifying conflicts of interest.

Irrespective of where you are in your career, it’s recommended that you take the time to check your ‘blind spot’ regularly and implement procedures to minimise the risk of complaints due to an unrecognised or unmitigated conflict of interest.