A proposal seeking to delay the applicability date of Department of Labor’s fiduciary duty rule (“DOLFR”), which impacts the compensation received by broker-dealers and investment advisers for the distribution of covered retirement accounts, was published on Thursday, March 2, 2017.  According to the federal register’s notice, the applicability date (which had been scheduled for April 10, 2017) was proposed to be delayed by 60-days to June 9, 2017.  The proposal allows for a 15-day comment period from the March 2, 2017 publication date, which would end on March 17, 2017.  The proposal also invited comment on a February 3, 2017 Presidential Memorandum to the Secretary of Labor, requesting broader review of DOLFR and its related exemptions.

For more on the DOLFR, including legal alerts and commentary, see www.dolfiduciaryrule.com.

The SEC staff’s recent guidance on robo-advisers is the most comprehensive SEC guidance to date concerning the considerations robo-advisers should keep in mind in meeting their legal obligations under the Advisers Act. The staff notes that robo-advisers, like all registered investment advisers, are subject to the substantive and fiduciary obligations of the Advisers Act. The staff further  indicates that because robo-advisers rely on algorithms, provide advisory services over the internet, and may offer limited, if any, direct human interaction to their clients, their unique business models may raise certain considerations when seeking to comply with the Advisers Act.

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