My job frequently requires that I explain to someone – whether my client, an ALJ, an arbitration panel, even a regulator – the fundamental difference between a broker-dealer and an investment advisor. An IA operates pursuant...more
My young boys will sometimes chase me around the house, catch me, and yell “gotcha” as they drag me off to their pretend jail. No matter how much I plead that I’ve done nothing wrong, I always end up in jail, despite having...more
12/19/2019
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Failure To Disclose ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Lack of Interpretive Guidance ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Regulation BI ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Transactions
This post is about Reg BI, but if you really want to learn about it, as opposed simply to listening to me gripe, I urge you to register for the webcast that my partners Heidi VonderHeide and Rob Betman will present on...more
Here is how PIABA’s one-track mind operates: in a Report it just issued, PIABA laments the frequency with which registered reps are able to get customer complaints expunged from their records. The sole reason for this, PIABA...more
10/23/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitrators ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Consumer Complaint Management ,
Expungement ,
False Evidence ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Investment Firms ,
Investment Management ,
Public Records ,
Registered Representatives
I was catching up on my reading and came across a column in Investment News by Mark Schoeff that described the results of a recent FINRA arbitration, results which I found a bit alarming. I caution you: reading too much into...more
9/25/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compensatory Damages ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Firms ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Liability ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Securities Transactions ,
Unregistered Brokers
The securities industry’s concern over the aging of the U.S. population, specifically, aging investors, has, apparently, reached a fever pitch. On February 5th in New York, SIFMA hosted its “Senior Investor Protection...more