Department of Labor Fiduciary Rule

The Department of Labor is expected to impose new regulations that require financial advisors to enter into a written contract with each client (“Fiduciary Rule”). This contract requires that the financial advisor act in the client’s best interest as well as a number of additional provisions and warranties.

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The Limited Fiduciary

Checklist of Popular Provisions and Protections

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | Oct 5, 2016

The implementation of the Fiduciary Rule for phone centers and Websites that eliminates the high risks, high costs and long time or limiting service that other solutions require...

WHY APRIL 10 WILL NOT CHANGE

…AND WHAT ADVISORS MUST DO

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | February 9, 2017

Bark Without Bite

The recent turmoil about the DoL Fiduciary Rule is unlikely to change anything in the short term. Long term changes will require a Herculean effort! In fact, additional exemptions are more likely than revisions of the current rule. There are four obstacles to changing the applicability date of April 10 or making other amendments before that time:...

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Assessing Compensation Reasonableness of Retirement Investment Advisers

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | Nov 4, 2016

The 21st century has seen an escalation in the focus on retirement adviser compensation coming from a plethora of lawsuits, new laws from Congress, Regulatory action and even the President promising to cut $17 billion from adviser’s pay. This unprecedented activity has led many to conclude that compensation will be cut. The basis for all this activity is the firm belief that advisers are excessively compensated for the work they do. Such a belief may have been fueled by the high profile case of Bernie Madoff. While it is entirely possible that unreasonable and excessive compensation exists, it is unreasonable to expect that such excesses are widespread...

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Computer Model Certification

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | Oct 24, 2016

The Fiduciary Rules go into effect April 10, 2017 and must be fully operational by January 1, 2018. These applicability dates set the timelines for decisions, preparation and implementation of alternatives to comply with these regulations. The Conflict of Interest Rules (“COIR”) replace the 1975 definition of what constitutes a fiduciary for ERISA plans and IRAs. The effect of COIR is to transform currently permitted practices into prohibited fiduciary acts. Institutions and individuals must cease these prohibited fiduciary acts or use an exemption to legitimize these activities...

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More Work and Less Pay

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | Oct 4, 2016

New Federal regulations change what financial advisors do and how they do it as well as the amount of compensation they receive. These regulations apply to advisors who offer investment advice to IRAs, retirement plans or participants. The effects will also be felt by clients, providers they use and affiliated firms...

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Fiduciary Rule: What If I Do Nothing, Again?

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | Sept 11, 2016

There has been an unprecedented level of resistance to the Fiduciary Rule that is scheduled to take effect in the fall of 2016. Opponents argue that these regulations pose a threat to the financial services industry and its clients and that the upheaval will cause more damage than any benefit that could be derived...

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Can Broker/Dealers Sustain Conflicting Objectives?

By Michael Kitces Editor in Chief | Published by kitces.com | Aug 18, 2016

The Broker/Dealer business model was created to distribute products to investors but has now incorporated the delivery of investment advice. When viewed as an investment advice business the inherent conflicts of interest has alarmed regulators and consumer advocates and driven the regulatory changes we see today. Michael Kitces offers some thoughts on how this incompatibility can be resolved, but “something’s gotta give!”

Mr. Kitces’ position is supported by DALBAR products such as the 408(g) Model Certification that separates the personality driven business of relationship management from the scientific probabilities of asset allocation and investment selection. The 408(g) Fee Leveling eliminates the conflicts of interest with an audit that complies with DoL and IRS regulations..

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Is the Compliance Safety Net Obsolete?

By Michael Kitces Editor in Chief | Published by kitces.com | Aug 2, 2016

If the goal of compliance practices is to keep advisors out of trouble, the job just got a lot harder. As firms seek a course of action after the Fiduciary Rule, the problem of compliance becomes exponentially more difficult. Compliance based on processing orders is not remotely capable of protecting anyone from what happens before the order is even received. Complex pre-order procedures and practices may go unsupervised without rethinking how compliance is achieved. Michael Kitces shares his views on the inadequacy of compliance that exists today...

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Advisors Guide to Best Interest Compliance (BICE)

By Louis S. Harvey | Published by Dalbar | Apr 7, 2016

Forthcoming Federal regulations require financial advisors to IRAs (including rollovers) and ERISA plans to enter into a binding contract to act in the client’s best interest or be subject to litigation and/or regulatory action by the IRS and/or Department of Labor...

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Ready or Not: Here Comes BICE

By Corey Clark | Published by Dalbar | 42016

The long disputed regulation of advice to IRA and ERISA plans appears to be ending and the requirements are likely to be put into effect within months. The reality that the Best Interest Contract Exemption (“BICE”) will lay down certain conditions for advisors to continue to receive compensation will mean that financial advisors must make a number of hard choices about the way they operate...

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DOL Rule Headache Solved? Dalbar Rolling Out Fee Calculator for Advisors

By Janet Levaux Editor in Chief Research | Published by thinkadvisor.com | 2016

The new fiduciary standard mandated by the Department of Labor prohibits advisors from making recommendations that will cause compensation for their services to be more than “reasonable.”

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Dalbar’s Harvey: DOL Fiduciary Rule’s Cost to Brokers’ Businesses

By Jane Wollman Rusoff Contributing Editor Research Magazine | Published by thinkadvisor.com | Apr 7, 2016

Dalbar CEO Louis Harvey talks to ThinkAdvisor about how the rule will change brokers’ day-to-day jobs — and how those who embrace their fiduciary duties can reap profits

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