Barack Obama advances rule hitting Wall Street, financial advisers

[ksen]

http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/barack-obama-financial-advisers-rule-115410.html

President Barack Obama is pushing ahead with a hotly contested rule to require more financial advisers to provide only advice that’s in the best interests of their clients — a standard that’s sure to invite more conflict with business groups and Wall Street, but that will also solidify his support among Elizabeth Warren and other Democratic populists.

In a speech to AARP on Monday, Obama will announce he’s telling the Labor Department to advance a proposed regulation that would apply the “fiduciary” standard to a wider circle of retirement advisers, rewriting rules that the administration says have become badly out of date since they were written in the 1970s.

I'm actually surprised there are financial advisers out there that are not currently required to have a fiduciary responsibility to their clients.

However, I am not surprised a bunch of financial advisers would object to being required to have one if they don't already.

The list of investment companies lobbying against this regulation should be published far and wide so people will know who not to trust their retirement money with.

 

[dismal]

Who exactly is calling for this law?

Somehow I don't imagine it's clients of investment advisors.

Probably plaintiffs lawyers.

 

[ksen]

Why would the investment industry balk at having a fiduciary responsibility to their clients?

 

[dismal]

Why would the investment industry balk at having a fiduciary responsibility to their clients?

Probably plaintiffs lawyers.

 

[ksen]

Who exactly is calling for this law?

It's a regulation, not a law.

President Obama is calling for the new regulations, it's right in the headline.

Somehow I don't imagine it's clients of investment advisors.

Probably plaintiffs lawyers.

So plaintiffs against investment advisers would be people that were not clients? How does that work?

 

[dismal]

So plaintiffs against investment advisers would be people that were not clients? How does that work?

Client loses money, client hires plaintiff's lawyer, plaintiff's lawyer files lawsuit, plaintiff's lawyer launches firm-wide fishing expedition to find a conflict of interest, firm pays lawyer to go away.

 

[ksen]

so they were clients

maybe if the advisers had a fiduciary responsibility the clients wouldn't have become plaintiffs.

 

[dismal]

so they were clients

maybe if the advisers had a fiduciary responsibility the clients wouldn't have become plaintiffs.

May you never have the occasion to meet a plaintiff's lawyer. I mean this sincerely.

For example it is now fairly routine to be sued by 4 or 5 ambulance chaser type firms if you are a Director of a public company that announces any sort of transaction. Fiduciary duty.