Author Archives: jwatkins

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About jwatkins

I am a securities and ERISA attorney. I hold CFP Board Emeritus™ status and I am an Accredited Wealth Management Advisor™. I provide fiduciary risk management consulting to 401k/430b plans, trustees, RIAs and other investment fiduciaries. I am a 1977 graduate of Georgia State University and a 1981 graduate of the University of Notre Dame Law School. I am the author of "CommonSense InvestSense: The Power of the Informed Investor" and "The 401(k)/403(b) Investment Manual: What Plan Sponsors and Plan Participants REALLY Need To Know" I write two blogs, "CommonSense InvestSense, investsense.com, and "The Prudent Investment Fiduciary Rules, fiduciaryinvestsense.com. As a former compliance director, I have extensive experience in evaluating the legal prudence of various types of investments, including mutual funds and annuities. My goal is to combine my legal and compliance experience in order to help educate investors and investment fiduciaries on sound, proven investment strategies that will help them protect their financial security and/or avoid unnecessary fiduciary liability exposure.

Due Diligence Doldrums

Posted on June 3, 2011 by jwatkins

Whether you are a registered representative, an investment advisory representative, or both, you have a legal obligation to do your due diligence regarding the suitability of any investments you intend to recommend to your clients.  What many brokers and advisory … Continue reading →

Posted in compliance, investments, retirement plans, RIA, RIA Compliance, securities | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Investment Advisers and Outsourcing

Posted on April 20, 2011 by jwatkins

Outsourcing is definitely one of the hot topics with investment advisers.  Most investment advisers I talk to about outsourcing feel that outsourcing asset management and/or compliance responsibilities will allow them to concentrate more on building up their assets under management and, consequently, their fees. … Continue reading →

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The Little Known Win-Win Fiduciary “Gotcha”

Posted on January 25, 2011 by jwatkins

It is well-established that investment advisers are fiduciaries.  Fiduciary law is based primarily on principles developed under agency law and trust law.  When you mention fiduciary law, most people immediately think of the duty of loyalty, the requirement that a … Continue reading →

Posted in 401k compliance, 404c compliance, compliance, investments, retirement plans, RIA, RIA Compliance, securities | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Times They Are A Changin’

Posted on December 21, 2010 by jwatkins

With the pending release by the SEC of the new fiduciary rules, I have received a lot of e-mails and calls regarding the potential implications for currently registered  investment advisers.  Since investment advisers have been held to be fiduciaries under both the … Continue reading →

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A Pure Heart and an Empty Head Is No Defense

Posted on November 18, 2010 by jwatkins

Unbeknownst to many investment advisers, it is their responsibility to educate themselves as to applicable legal standards for their advisory practices.  Investment advisers affiliated with a broker-dealer often assume that the broker-dealer will keep them updated as to any compliance … Continue reading →

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Hello world!

Posted on November 11, 2010 by jwatkins

IA Insight is a blog for investment advisers and those who advise investment advisers, such as attorneys and compliance personnel.  The goal is to provide practical and meaningful information to help investment advisers and their advisers develop and maintain acceptable “best … Continue reading →

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