ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER

Fiduciary Rule Finally Takes Effect

Putting You First

After months of delay, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) long-debated “fiduciary rule” took effect last week. Although the final rule was somewhat watered down from early drafts, it nonetheless ushers in a new era when it comes to advising Americans about retirement savings. Simply put, the rule requires financial advisors to put your interests first. We at Evans Law Firm applaud the fiduciary rule. We combat exploitative financial practices against retirement savers all the time. If you or a loved one has been a victim of a breach of fiduciary duty, securities fraud or financial elder abuse, or find yourself headed toward a FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) arbitration, contact the Evans Law Firm securities and financial elder abuse attorneys at (415) 441-8669 and we can help. As California lawyers, we only handle these types of cases arising in California.

What This Means

From now on when you seek advice on your IRA, 401(k) or other retirement savings account, your financial advisor, broker or banker will be required to put your interests first in whatever recommendations he or she makes. That doesn’t sound like much to ask, does it? But the reality is that until now the advisor has only been required to suggest “suitable” investments which frankly may be better suited to generate fees and commission for the advisor than long-term retirement savings for you. The DOL rule requires the advisor to recommend investments that benefit you the most regardless of the fees, commissions, or other benefits to the advisor.

The rule applies to advice regarding Individual Retirement Accounts (both Roth and traditional), including rollover recommendations. The application to rollovers is particularly important; in fact under the rule the advisor would need to recommend that you not rollover funds at all if your best interests are served by leaving your retirement funds right where they are. Hopefully, the rule will curtail “churning” of retirement accounts under the guise of suitable rollovers. Time will tell. The fiduciary rule also applies to workplace retirement plans, such as 401(k)s and SEP and SIMPLE IRAs. The rule does not apply to non-retirement accounts.

Contact Us

If you or a loved one has been a victim of a breach of fiduciary duty, annuity or securities fraud or financial elder abuse in San Francisco County or anywhere in California or are headed to FINRA Arbitration, contact the Evans Law Firm securities attorneys at (415) 441-8669, or by email at info@evanslaw.com. Our attorneys have experience with complex securities cases, arbitrations, and mediations; and complicated financial contracts and large insurance companies. We can help guide your case through a jury trial or toward an equitable settlement. We also handle cases involving physical and financial elder abuse, other types of qui tam and whistleblower cases, nursing home abuse, whole life insurance and universal life insurance, and indexed, variable, and fixed annuities.