Only in rare cases can the two be seen as undeniably discrete. It is frequently difficult to identify the nature of a problem. Often assessing whether there is an ethical problem depends initially on an assessment of the legal position, but in many cases it is purely a matter of law. The answer frequently lies in 'good old common sense'. The intermingling of legal and ethical principles often causes a problem, particularly in relation to the extent to which the Society can intervene to help resolve what might appear to be an ethical dilemma.
Conflict of interest is a fairly clear example of how ethical and legal principles are intertwined.
For the Society in deciding whether a solicitor has a conflict of interest, recourse is had to the principles enunciated in the Revised Professional Conduct and Practice Rules as well as the large body of case law on conflict of interest. While it is essentially an ethical issue for the Society, heavy reliance must be placed on the case law. For the Courts, the conflict of interest question is a legal issue, and the basis of their consideration of the problem is that they have control over their own procedures and therefore over who can appear for a party. This then raises the issue of alleging the solicitor for the other party has an ethical problem in continuing to act, purely as a tactical measure. A solicitor faced with an allegation of conflict of interest will often assert that the other side has only raised it as a tactical measure.