# Account, opportunity and case teams and Sales Territories

*Platform Sharing and Visibility Architect Study Guide · Access to Records · Last updated October 26, 2026 · https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/platform-sharing-and-visibility-architect/access-to-records/account-opportunity-and-case-teams-and-sales-territories*

How account, opportunity and case teams give record-by-record access chosen by the owner, what survives an ownership change, why private opportunities and high-volume users can't use teams, and when Sales Territories or Apex managed sharing fits better than a team.

- Certification: Salesforce Platform Sharing and Visibility Architect
- Exam section: Access to Records
- Study guide: https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/platform-sharing-and-visibility-architect

**Official exam objective:**

> Given a set of conditions, determine how teams can support the record access requirements.

## What the exam expects

- Choose an account, opportunity or case team when access is decided record by record by the owner.
- Predict a member's effective access when teams meet defaults, sharing rules and linked account access.
- Predict which team members and edit rights survive an owner change.
- Recognise where teams can't be used: private opportunities, high-volume users, custom objects.
- Decide when Sales Territories fits better than teams, and how territory access levels work.

Key terms: **team** (users the owner adds to one account, opportunity or case, each with an access level); **team role** (a member's job on the team; on case teams it also sets access); **default account team** (a rep's usual collaborators, added to their accounts); **Retain Edit Rights for Previous Owner** (keeps edit access for the old opportunity owner); **Sales Territories** (formerly Enterprise Territory Management; territory-based account, lead and opportunity access).

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Linked access | Private Account and Opportunity: opportunity access gives Read on the account | [Account Teams Considerations](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.accountteam_def.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Team Member Access action | Highest access across all methods | [Account Teams Considerations](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.accountteam_def.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Shared roles | Account and opportunity teams share team roles | [Account Team Roles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.accountteam_customize_roles.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Retain Edit Rights | Needs Private opportunity default and owner on the team | [Opportunity Teams Considerations](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.salesteam_def.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Closed opportunity, account owner change | Team shares deleted unless splits are enabled | [Opportunity Teams Considerations](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.salesteam_def.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Private checkbox | Removes teams, splits and sharing | [Opportunity Fields](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.opp_fields.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Case team roles | Can't be deleted, only replaced; owner keeps Read and Write | [Case Team Roles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=service.caseteam_roles.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Territory access | Parent territories inherit the child's access level | [Territory Default Access](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.tm2_define_default_record_access.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |

## Check yourself

- Why might a user still edit an account's opportunities after an admin lowers their team member access to Read Only?
- When does an opportunity team member get Read access to the parent account automatically?
- What does a Read Only case team role allow?
- Why does a custom object that needs per-record teams point to Apex managed sharing?

## Sources

- [Considerations for Using Account Teams](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.accountteam_def.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Working with Teams on Your Accounts](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.accountteam_add.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Customize Account Team Roles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.accountteam_customize_roles.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Considerations and Guidelines for Using Opportunity Teams](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.salesteam_def.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Case Teams](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=service.caseteam_setup.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Create Case Team Roles](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=service.caseteam_roles.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Platform Sharing Architecture](https://architect.salesforce.com/docs/architect/fundamentals/guide/platform-sharing-architecture)
- [Sharing Considerations](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.security_sharing_considerations.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Opportunity Fields](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.opp_fields.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [About High-Volume Community or Site Users](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=platform.networks_about_hvpu.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Sales Territories Concepts](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.tm2_territory_mgmt_overview.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Define Default User Access for Territory Records](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.tm2_define_default_record_access.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [How Do Permissions for Territories Affect Feature and Data Access?](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=sales.tm2_how_access_permissions_work.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Enterprise Territory Management Is Now Sales Territories](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=release-notes.rn_sales_spm_etm_to_sales_territories.htm&language=en_US&release=250&type=5)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 13 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Platform Sharing and Visibility Architect pack (USD $19): https://www.certifyforce.com/practice-exams