Resolving ethical dilemmas

1. Regulatory Concept & Core Standards

In this video we will consolidate a skill: explain an ethical choice using actual criteria. Use the case to test what you would do in a similar situation. We will explain the proposed response step by step so that you can understand each choice and recognise when more information would be needed. The code translates principles into specific choices. It applies with law, contracts and legitimate organisational procedures. An internal document cannot exclude lawful external reporting or whistleblower protection.

Consider law, code, interests and consequences. Everybody does it is not a justification. Fear of delay does not justify concealing a conflict.

Apply the following rule: Article 4 covers specified EU-law matters, EU financial interests and the internal market. Law 5095/2024 article 20 adds the specified national bribery and trading-in-influence offences. Law 5232/2025 article 9 adds EU restrictive-measures breaches. Law 5321/2026 article 20 adds the AI Act to the Annex and updates the general-product-safety reference. Apply the particular provision’s temporal and material scope; not every workplace disagreement qualifies.

2. Practical Implementation & Procedure

Record options and the relevant rule. Assess who is affected and who can decide independently. Document the decision and limits. Before moving on, turn this procedure into a sequence you could explain to a colleague. Identify the first check, the action that depends on its outcome and the record that allows the decision to be reconstructed. Follow the sequence on screen and identify the point where an error would change the result.

Consider how a colleague taking over tomorrow would understand the decision. Identify the verified information and its source, who is authorised to decide and who checks the result. The record should connect the decision to the material actually used rather than repeat the whole file. State critical gaps and assign a specific action to resolve them. This makes continuity independent of one person’s memory. Apply the proposed organisational steps within legal powers. In the case, distinguish observation, conclusion and hypothesis. An observation describes available evidence, a conclusion explains what can reasonably be inferred and a hypothesis still needs checking. Do not infer motives merely from unusual behaviour. Identify which further information could change the decision and whether it can be obtained lawfully and proportionately. Incomplete knowledge justifies neither certainty of guilt nor indifference to an actual risk.

3. Case Study & Compliance Action

A manager is pressed to approve a favourable exception for a friend to close a transaction quickly. Now read the case carefully. Separate established facts from information you would still need to confirm. Do not add motives or events that have not been described. This distinction matters when choosing a response proportionate to the information available.

The exercise is as follows: What is the appropriate first step? Choose an answer and write one sentence explaining it. During the pause, compare your choice with the criteria we have just considered. Also think about the material you would retain to explain the decision later.

Disclose the relationship and arrange independent assessment of the exception using applicable criteria.

One mistake to avoid is: justifying concealment by time pressure.

Now apply the national rule to a second decision. A report is automatically called protected because it includes the word corruption. What check is missing?

Assess the facts, work-related context and national protection conditions. The form label helps organise information but does not decide legal coverage. If the case is outside scope, identify an appropriate procedure without unnecessary disclosure.