On April 18, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 4-1 to propose a package of rules and interpretations (Proposals) intended to improve the retail investor experience and to provide greater clarity...more
4/20/2018
/ 401k ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Comment Period ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EDGAR ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Form ADV ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Standard of Care
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on March 15, 2018 issued an opinion (Opinion) vacating the Department of Labor (DOL) fiduciary rule and related applicable exemptions. The DOL had promulgated the rule and...more
4/18/2018
/ Appeals ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mutual Funds ,
Petition For Rehearing ,
Retirement Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Vacated
Although the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) staff is currently drafting proposed rules relating to the standard of conduct for broker-dealers and investment advisers, several states have decided not to wait for...more
4/4/2018
/ Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Planning ,
Investment Adviser ,
Popular ,
Retirement Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State and Local Government
It has been a long and winding road for the amended fiduciary regulation (the "Regulation") and the related new and amended exemptions (collectively, the "Rule") of the U.S. Department of Labor (the "DOL") under the Employee...more
3/26/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Investment Adviser ,
Lack of Authority ,
Retirement Funds ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration ,
Vacated
The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) recently released a report examining the regulatory framework for the asset management and insurance industries (Report). The Report is the third in a series of four reports that...more
12/5/2017
/ Asset Management ,
CFTC ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Derivatives ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exchange-Traded Products ,
Federal Reserve ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Stability Board ,
FSOC ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Liquidity Risk Management Rule ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Retirement Plan ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SIFIs ,
Stress Tests ,
Systemic Risk Buffer ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Volcker Rule
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule on April 7, 2017 (Final Extension),1 delaying for 60 days the applicability date of the new rule defining who is a fiduciary under ERISA (Fiduciary Rule)2 and related...more
In response to a request for interpretative guidance, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission staff (staff) advised on January 11, 2017 that Section 22(d) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 does not prevent a broker...more
2/2/2017
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Brokers ,
Clean Shares ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Interpretive Opinions ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Mutual Funds ,
Safe Harbors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued in April 2016 the final version of its controversial “investment advice” regulation and various related exemptions (collectively, Final Rules), which are widely expected to have a...more
11/18/2016
/ Annuities ,
Asset Management ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compensation Agreements ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Retirement Plan
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued the final version of its “fiduciary investment advice” regulation (Final Rule) on April 6, 2016, following a lengthy proposal and re-proposal process. Although the Final Rule reflects...more
10/25/2016
/ 401k ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Delays ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Mutual Funds ,
Retirement Plan
The Department of Labor (DOL) has issued the final version of its “investment advice” regulation (Final Rule), which is widely expected to impact significantly the financial services industry, including registered investment...more
8/30/2016
/ 401k ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Distribution Rules ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Adviser ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Mutual Funds ,
Registered Investment Companies (RICs)
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) on April 6, 2016 released the final version of its “investment advice” regulation and accompanying prohibited transaction exemptions, a highly-anticipated milestone that is the...more
5/27/2016
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Brokers ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Retirement Plan