Conflict of interest refers to the situation where one person has a duty towards more than one individual or a company and they are unable to perform the duties successfully at the same time. A conflict of interest may arise when there is individual benefit or concerns involved and which are not aligned to that of the customers.
As an example an attorney, a business adviser, realtor, or an accountant can’t come as a representative for any of the two parties involved in a conflict or dispute. Another example is when a public official’s personal interests are opposite to that of their official interests or responsibility.