investment advisers

There are certain topics that broker-dealers have been encountering for decades, yet continue unnecessarily to wrestle with due to the absence of clear guidance from the regulators.  I have written about one such topic before, and that’s the fuzzy line between most outside business activities, which RRs are obliged (at a minimum) by rule to

A common complaint that I hear from broker-dealers and investment advisors is that it is nearly impossible anymore to obtain informal guidance from their regulators. Where it was once possible, even normal, to make a call and get casual advice how to comply with a particularly tricky rule, nowadays, regulators routinely decline to respond to

Years ago, I handled the defense of a FINRA Enforcement case that still galls me.  The client sent a series of emails, over many months, about a particular security to customers who already owned the stock.  The point of the emails was largely to provide updates, and, from time-to-time, to suggest that the customers consider

We have previously posted on the issue of CCO liability, a very sensitive subject, to say the least, for many readers of this blog.  If this is a subject that interests you, then there was a very intriguing development this past week in this area that merits your attention.

It came in the form of

SEC Chairwoman Mary Jo White recently announced her support of a uniform fiduciary standard for broker-dealers and investment advisers, ending any remaining speculation as to her views on the subject. The announcement kicked of a whirlwind of speculation in the industry – What would the new standard look like? When would we see it? Will