The election of Donald J. Trump to be the 45th president of the United States and Republican control of both congressional houses could have profound impacts on financial services regulation, including the fiduciary regulation and related prohibited transaction exemptions (PTEs and collectively with the regulation, the Rule) adopted by the US Department of Labor (DOL) earlier this year. The Rule became effective on June 7, 2016, and the House of Representatives sustained President Barack Obama’s veto of the joint resolution of Congress disapproving the Rule on June 22, 2016.

Many financial services firms are asking whether they still need to operate on the basis of the Rule’s applicability date being April 10, 2017. At this time, there is no clear answer, and we do not know (and may not know until early next year) what the Trump Administration or new Congress intends in this area.