Obligation-Conflict Resolution
Case 65-12 (1965) · Participation in Production of Unsafe Equipment
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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Company B Engineers Production Participation Refusal Obligation
prevails over
Company B Engineers Employer Instruction Non-Override Recognition
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Officials Instruct Engineers to Proceed Despite Unresolved Safety Concern
Company B Engineers Post-Client-Override Public Safety Escalation
prevails over
Company B Engineers Graduated Internal Escalation Through Officials
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Engineers Inter-Firm Escalation Completed Without Resolution
Company B Engineers Public Welfare Paramount Duty Fulfillment
prevails over
Company B Engineers Competing Loyalty Resolution in Favor of Public Safety
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Engineers Competing Duties: Employer Loyalty vs. Public Safety
Company B Engineers Project Withdrawal Obligation
prevails over
Company B Engineers Employment Loss Acceptance as Cost of Safety Refusal
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Engineers Employment Loss Risk from Safety Withdrawal Obligation
Company B Engineers Ethics Code Purposive Reading Application
prevails over
Company B Engineers Production Participation Refusal Obligation
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Engineers Participation Bar in Unsafe Machinery Design
Company B Engineers Appropriate Authority Notification After Override
prevails over
Company B Engineers Competing Loyalty Resolution in Favor of Public Safety
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Engineers Competing Duties: Employer Loyalty vs. Public Safety
Company B Engineers Project Withdrawal If Production Proceeds
prevails over
Company B Engineers Employment Loss Acceptance for Public Safety
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Whistleblower Employment Jeopardy for Company B Engineers Refusing to Proceed
Business Decision Boundary Non-Extension to Public Safety Case 61-10 Distinction
prevails over
Company B Engineers Employer Instruction Non-Override Recognition
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Officials Instruct Engineers to Proceed Despite Unresolved Safety Concern
Company B Engineers Going-Along Prohibition After Employer Override
prevails over
Company B Engineers Passive Acquiescence Independent Ethical Failure Risk
the two obligations are in tension (competesWith)
the yielding obligation gives way only under (defeasibleUnder):
- Company B Engineers Employer-Ordered Execution of Disputed Design
Open tensions recorded without a resolution:
Company A Engineers Objective Review of External Safety Notification vs Cross-Firm Honest Safety Disagreement Impartial Referral Recommendation
What the board concluded
- The ethical obligations of the engineers of Company "B" are to notify their employer of possible dangers to the public safety and seek to have the design and specifications altered to make the machinery safe in their opinion; if the opinions cannot be reconciled they should propose submission of the problem to an independent and impartial body of experts: unless and until the engineers of...