August 30, 2010
I am deeply troubled by the debate currently going on over the issue of a "Fiduciary Standard" for all brokers and financial advisors. The current oversight provided by FINRA creates a high bar for brokers to clear in their consideration of client needs and appropriate recommendations. The amount of regulation currently provides a great deal of client protection and in requiring us to disclose our compensation, this also contributes to allowing the client to know the fees involved, thereby having a good understanding of any motivation on the part of the broker. Adding a true "Fiduciary Standard" to this would make the process unbearable - and ridiculous in comparison to any other profession that doesn't have this - and almost none of them do.