Insights

WSJ Commentary: Leave Broker Disclosures to the SEC

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Labor Department have both asserted the authority to regulate investment brokers. The two of us—a former SEC commissioner and a former labor solicitor—have a word of advice for Labor concerning its recent efforts to adopt new rules on broker conflicts of interest: It’s time to pass the baton.

Morning Consult: Labor Department Needs to Re-Examine Its Analysis of Fiduciary Rule

Patomak Senior Advisor Craig Lewis writes:As my students are back in lecture halls this fall, they are being reminded that it is more important to complete their assignments properly, rather than quickly.  Mistakes at the beginning invariably lead to disappointing conclusions. That’s a lesson worth repeating to regulators in Washington too. Take, for example, the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule, which went into partial effect in June with the objective of improving the efficiencies in the market for retirement services upon which Americans rely. The rule’s regulatory impact analysis, produced in April 2016, found that imposing a fiduciary standard on brokers would save Americans billions.

However, as my new white paper shows, the Labor Department’s projections were based on incorrect interpretations of academic research.

Keynote Address: Broker/Dealer Regulation and Enforcement 2016

Over the last eight years, American businesses, investors, and consumers have been buried under a mountain of costly red tape. Now, I do not need to tell you that the economy is not as good as it could be. One of the major reasons is the growth of legislation and consequent regulation emanating from Washington that has stymied growth.