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Courses/Finance/Ethical, Professional, and Regulatory Compliance

Client Capacity: Ethical Decision Making

Financial advisers face rising ethical and legal challenges as clients’ capacity declines. This session covers wealth transfer, capacity checks, and practical steps to guide clients.

Created byFinancial Advice Association Australia (FAAA)
BeginnerUpdated Sep 22, 2025
Client Capacity: Ethical Decision Making

What You'll Learn

check_circleIdentify legal and ethical considerations when advising clients with declining capacity in financial planning.
check_circleDemonstrate practical methods for assessing client capacity and managing conflicting client instructions ethically.
check_circleAnalyse the role of financial advisers in inheritance planning amidst the "great wealth transfer" with aging clients.
check_circlePlan proactively for clients' future capacity changes.

About This Course

Financial advisers are confronted with clients whose capacity is declining, which raises both legal and ethical issues. As Australia’s population lives longer, more advisers will be exposed to clients with declining capacity. Advisers will also be on the front line of the “great wealth transfer” in the next few decades – planning for and managing deteriorating client capacity will be a critical element of inheritance and wealth transfer planning.

In this session, Richard Hopkin, Senior Associate at Cowell Clarke Commercial Lawyers, will navigate the ethics of providing services to clients who might no longer have capacity, including practical tips about establishing whether a client has capacity and what to do when a client’s instructions become contrary to their best interests.

Your Instructors

Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA)
Financial Advice Association Australia (FAAA)

Australia's Leading Professional Association for the Financial Advice Profession

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The Financial Advice Association of Australia (FAAA) is the leading body representing financial planning and financial advice professionals in the Southern Hemisphere. We deliver high-quality learning experiences designed to drive real-world-results for professionals. With thousands of professionals benefiting from our Continuing Professional Development (CPD, PD, CPE, CE) webinars, we’ve helped lawyers, accountants, financial planners, financial advisers, solicitors, fund managers, financial coaches, government officials, insurance and mortgage brokers and many more professionals enhance their skills, stay informed, remain compliant and advance in their careers. We bridge the gap between theory and practice, offering content curated by industry experts to equip you with practical knowledge in high-demand areas. Investing in the FAAA’s professional development content means choosing quality, convenience and credibility. We delve into current issues often with live case studies presented by professionals who walk the talk. Our webinars are not only informative but also practical, providing you with actionable insights that you can apply in your daily practice. Our speakers are from various backgrounds, including law, accounting, finance and more. We specialise in practical training in areas such as Ethics, Regulatory & Compliance, Expat- Tax, Client Care and Technical Competence. Whether you are a professional, recent graduate, manager or lifelong learner, you’ll find practical courses to advance your career with confidence.

Richard  Hopkin
Richard Hopkin

Senior Associate | Cowell Clarke’s Financial Services

Richard Hopkin is a Senior Associate in Cowell Clarke’s Financial Services team. Richard practices predominantly in the area of financial services regulation and compliance across the financial services industry, covering Australian Financial Services (AFS) licensing and compliance, including: AFSL applications and variations, ASIC reporting and enforcement, remediation programs and IDR/AFCA matters. Richard is a key part of Cowell Clarke’s online AFSL compliance portal services. Richard also works on related commercial and corporate projects, including commercial contracts and M&A.

Credit Information

Do these courses count toward my professional development requirements?

This portal is provided as a training and development resource for City of Markham employees. Every course is delivered by a qualified subject matter expert or learning organization, is quantifiable in hours, and is verifiable — you receive a documented certificate of completion for every course you finish, stored on LearnFormula indefinitely.

If you hold a professional designation (for example in engineering, accounting, human resources, or law), courses may be counted as professionally relevant, verifiable learning activities toward your continuing professional development. Individual practitioners are responsible for confirming that an activity meets the requirements of their professional body. For questions about the City of Markham's training and development policies, please speak with your people leader or Human Resources.

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We are a registered provider with 327+ associations and regulatory bodies worldwide. We operate across 29 global markets including Canada, the US, Australia, and the UK. Every course page clearly displays its specific accreditations. Upon completion, you receive a professional certificate that can be validated online. Our certificates include all necessary accreditation details, credit hours, and completion dates, and are formatted specifically to meet the submission requirements of most global regulatory bodies.