You’ll see that A LOT of ethics questions are like this – you can trim 2 choices off right out of the gate, but then boil down to two that ostensibly look alike. From there, it’s anyone’s guess and you have to know the Standards 1-7 cold to nail it. I am doing ethics now…
you have to know Standards cold there are also a several tricky situations you have to know too - for example, a researcher going to Alaska with a group of other researchers and charter flights from gold mine to gold mine are arranged by the company because there are no regular flights there and modest logging is provided for all researchers, etc. Or another one: problems with law because of social protest against pollutions, etc. Most of those situations have been discussed on the board.
“there are also a several tricky situations you have to know too - for example, a researcher going to Alaska with a group of other researchers and charter flights from gold mine to gold mine are arranged by the company because there are no regular flights there and modest logging is provided for all researchers, etc” this should be OK since it is hard to find alternative travel means
“Or another one: problems with law because of social protest against pollutions, etc.” If your portfolio manager gets arrested at a Washington DC anti-pollution rally, it is NOT a violation. however, if he/she goes drinking at lunch and comes back to the office to place a block trade with Goldman, it IS, assuming they are inebriated
What about that one where your employer is part of an organized crime ring? You make no violation if you stay quiet?