The duty of fidelity and fiduciary duties

Published by a ³ÉÈËÓ°Òô Employment expert
Practice notes

The duty of fidelity and fiduciary duties

Published by a ³ÉÈËÓ°Òô Employment expert

Practice notes
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All employees are under a duty of fidelity to their employer. The duty of fidelity is also known as the Duty of good faith, or of loyalty.

Fidelity is a broad concept containing a number of more specific duties, some of which overlap both with each other and with the duty of trust and confidence (see Practice Note: The term of trust and confidence):

  1. •

    to behave honestly—the duty of fidelity requires that an employee is honest in their dealings with their employer (see: Duty of fidelity—honesty, below)

  2. •

    not to work in competition—employees may not work for a competitor organisation (including one they have set up) during their employment (see: Duty of fidelity—competition and Duty of fidelity—Preparation to compete, below)

  3. •

    not to make a secret profit—employees must not make secret profit, and must give to their employer any money that they do make (see: Duty of fidelity—secret profit, below)

  4. •

    to disclose information—as with money, so all information created in the course of employment must be passed to the employer (see: Duty of fidelity—disclosure

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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Key definition:
Fiduciary definition
What does Fiduciary mean?

A person, or entity, who acts for the benefit and on behalf of another person or group of persons. A fiduciary holds a legally enforceable position of trust.

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