FINRA’s report on its broker-dealer examination findings for 2018 features a substantial discussion of “Unsuitable Variable Annuity Recommendations.” This is in sharp contrast with FINRA’s 2017 report, which didn’t mention...more
The SEC staff now says that mutual fund directors can rely on chief compliance officer certifications in determining compliance with board procedures required by SEC exemptive Rules 10f-3, 17a-7, and 17e-1 under the...more
The SEC, on June 5, announced that it would be exploring “modernization of the design, delivery and content of fund disclosures” in order “to improve the investor experience and help investors make more informed investment...more
New York Pushes Mutual Fund Active Share Disclosure -
New York’s Attorney General issued a report on its recent investigation of fees charged by actively managed equity mutual funds and a metric known as “Active Share.”...more
7/23/2018
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Annuities ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Churning ,
Class Action ,
COI Rates ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Data Security ,
Filing Requirements ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Insurance Investment Products ,
Investment Companies ,
Life Insurance ,
Lucia v SEC ,
MassMutual ,
Mutual Funds ,
NAIC ,
Policy Terms ,
Preemption ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SLUSA ,
Unclaimed Property
The SEC has reported to Congress that it expects the Division of Investment Management (IM) to provide comments at a slower pace during the 2018 and 2019 fiscal years....more
Once again, the SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) has made variable insurance products an exam priority....more
EXPECTFOCUS is a quarterly review of developments in the insurance and financial services industry, provided on a complimentary basis to clients and friends of Carlton Fields Jorden Burt, P.A.
...more
1/18/2018
/ Annuities ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Innovation ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
NAIC ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Department of the Treasury published an October 2017 report, "A Financial System That Creates Economic Opportunities — Asset Management and Insurance" in response to President Trump’s Executive Order 13772 on "Core...more
1/17/2018
/ Annuities ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
Mutual Funds ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury
FINRA has taken another step to protect against what it calls "financial exploitation of vulnerable individuals or individuals with diminished capacity." These include seniors (at least age 65) and persons (at least age 18)...more
Regulators Demand Third-Party Risk Management -
While third-party risk management has been a required component of an effective enterprise risk management program for many years, the topic is receiving elevated attention...more
4/18/2017
/ Article III ,
Clean Shares ,
Elder Abuse ,
Exploitation ,
Fiduciary Exception ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Life Insurance ,
Mutual Funds ,
NAIC ,
Reinsurance ,
Sales Commissions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Settlement Cycles ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing ,
Third Party Funding ,
Third-Party Risk ,
Unfair Competition Law (UCL) ,
Variable Annuities ,
Vulnerable Victims
President Trump’s nominee for SEC Chairman, Jay Clayton, could speed authorization of the variable annuity (VA) summary prospectus and related layered disclosure and shortened underlying fund report to shareholders. Doing so...more
- Should Your Company Purchase Bitcoin to Pay a Cyber Ransom?
- NAIC Draws Line in CFPB Sandbox
- NAIC’s Big Data Task Force Sets Charges for 2017
- Broker-Dealers Can Hold Customers’ Initial Checks...more
1/9/2017
/ Annuities ,
Big Data ,
Bitcoin ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cross-Selling ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Currency ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
FinTech ,
Insurance Industry ,
Life Insurance ,
NAIC ,
OCC ,
Prudential Insurance ,
Ransomware ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
STOLI ,
Trump Administration ,
Usury ,
Virtual Currency
An investment adviser seeking to show how a particular investment strategy would have performed during specified time periods would be well advised to:
use only historical performance data and not a mix of historical...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed that filings on Securities Act registration form types beginning with “S-” and “F-”, or on the basic Securities Exchange Act reporting forms, provide hyperlinks to...more
This article addresses the liability of inside attorneys at asset management companies— mutual fund sponsors, investment advisers, broker-dealers, life insurance companies—as gatekeepers under rules of the US Securities and...more
9/22/2015
/ Appearance Policy ,
Arthur Anderson ,
Asset Management ,
Best Interest Contract Exemptions ,
Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enron ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investors ,
Life Insurance ,
Mutual Funds ,
Negligence ,
Private Right of Action ,
Professional Liability ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholders ,
WorldCom
William Kotapish, an Assistant Director in the SEC’s Division of Investment Management, recently stated that the SEC staff is prepared to recommend that the Commission adopt rules and forms authorizing a variable annuity...more
When SEC Commissioner Luis A. Aguilar recently cited "the need for the Commission and state regulators to focus on combatting fraud involving complex securities" including "equity-indexed annuities," he did not discuss...more
In This Issue:
- IN THE SPOTLIGHT
..Standard CGL Policy Form Adds Data Breach Coverage Exclusion
- LIFE INSURANCE
..Class Claims Against Lincoln National Barred in Section 419 Action – Again
...more
9/30/2014
/ Accredited Investors ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Burwell v Hobby Lobby ,
Class Action ,
Commercial General Liability Policies ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Creditors ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Data Brokers ,
Debt Collection ,
DMCA ,
Enforcement Actions ,
ESOP ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Foreclosure ,
Fraud-on-the-Market ,
Hallmark ,
Investment Adviser ,
Judge Rakoff ,
Life Insurance ,
NAIC ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent-Eligible Subject Matter ,
Patents ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Proxy Advisors ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan ,
Taco Bell ,
TCPA ,
Text Messages ,
Variable Annuities ,
Whistleblowers
Once again, the SEC has delayed action on the variable annuity summary prospectus—this time, until March 2015. The SEC revealed the news, rather surreptitiously, in a submission to the Office of Management and Budget...more
In This Issue:
- IN THE SPOTLIGHT
..Private Equity: The Next Wave of SEC Enforcement Actions?
- LIFE INSURANCE
..How to Fight a STOLI Scheme: Court Rulings Offer Clues
..STOA Schemes Face...more
Two recent Consent Orders issued by the New York State Department of Financial Services against major insurers appear to signal the Department’s enhanced focus on insurers’ detailed compliance with regulatory requirements....more
Whistleblowing law continues to develop, with a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision holding that, despite ambiguous statutory language, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 protects employees of private companies serving as...more
7/17/2014
/ Contractors ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Investment Adviser ,
Lawson v FMR ,
Popular ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblowers
Last week, the Third District Court of Appeal resolved any questions concerning the applicability of the Daubert standard in Florida following the legislative changes to Florida's evidence code in July 2013. ...more
FINRA is reviewing a slew of comments on a controversial proposal to develop a comprehensive automated risk data system, nicknamed "CARDS." FINRA published the proposal on December 23, 2013, in Regulatory Notice 13-42, and...more
In This Issue:
- IN THE SPOTLIGHT
..Sixth Circuit Revisits Controversial ERISA Decision
- LIFE INSURANCE
..Summary Judgment Victory for Life Insurer in Annuity Class Action
..Favorable Secondary Life Market...more
3/31/2014