Professional Codes of Practice and the Law of Obligations

This paper discusses how professional codes of practice and the law of obligations interact to influence professional practice. The private law of obligations applies to professional services that involve engagement in markets for the supply of goods and services. Self-regulating profession bodies determine, monitor and enforce codes of conduct for their members. This paper begins with an overview of codes of conduct as forms of regulation, explores the regulatory effect of the law of obligations then analyses the interaction between the two regulatory forms.