ethical obligation
Right thing required
An ethical obligation is a duty arising from moral principles rather than law or contract.
Where legal obligations carry penalties and contractual ones are enforced by agreement, ethical obligations bind through conscience and social expectation: Doctors have an ethical obligation to do no harm.
The phrase often appears when someone could legally avoid responsibility but shouldn't: The company had no legal liability, but many felt it had an ethical obligation to compensate victims.
- categorical imperativeUnconditional ethical obligation
- integrityMoral soundness and consistency
- honestyTruthfulness, sincerity
- keep your wordFulfill a promise made
- whistleblowingExposing hidden wrongdoing internally
accountability · fiduciary duty · code of conduct · deontology · informed consent · confidentiality · civic responsibility · due process · fair treatment · social justice · covenant · good faith · human rights · promise · compliance · non-maleficence · do no harm · consequentialism
- accountabilityaccountability, responsibility, accountable, take responsibility, answerability
- neglectneglect, neglected, abandonment, carelessness, disregard
- legal capacitylegal capacity, mental capacity, capacity, incapacity, competence
- legal dutiesduty of care, legal duty, standard of care, breach of duty, professional duty
- legal privilegesattorney-client privilege, privilege, privileged communication, legal privilege, spousal privilege
ethical obligationfree choice
Unrestricted decision-making power
whim · voluntary action · recommendation · preference · luxury
ethical obligationlegal obligation
Duty enforced by law
self-interest · contractual obligation · social convention · expedience · strategic advantage
ethical obligationforbidden act
Banned behavior
sin · transgression · vice · ethical violation · wrongdoing