Tag Archives: fiduciary risk management

Trust, But Verify: Protecting Against Investment Consultants’ Inherent Conflicts of Interest

James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP EmeritusTM, AWMA® The courts have consistently recognized the inherent conflict of interest that exists in the investment industry between investment advisers/consult and clients: “In this conflict of interest, the law wisely interposes. It acts … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, cost-efficiency, Cost_Efficiency, defined contribution, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, investment advisers, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Reading Between the Marketing Lines: Fiduciary Risk Management in the Face of Complexity and Conflicts-of-Interests

James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP EmeritusTM, AWMA® Simplicity is the new sophistication. – Steve Jobs Complexity is job security. – Rick Ferri I recently conducted a fiduciary prudence audit for a 401(k) plan. During the review of my audit … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k litigation, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, cost consciousness, ERISA, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, fiduciary standard, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, retirement plans | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Fiduciary Prudence Ratio™: Quantifying Fiduciary Prudence and the Quality of Investment Advice

James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP EmeritusTM, AWMA® Most pension plans use mutual funds as the primary investment options within their plan. The Restatement of Trusts (Restatement) states that fiduciaries should carefully compare the costs and risks associated with a … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k litigation, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, AMVR, cost consciousness, cost-efficiency, defined contribution, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan sponsors, prudence | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Curious Paradox: “Meaningful Benchmarks,” Fiduciary Prudence, and the Active Management Value Ratio

James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP EmeritusTM, AWMA® Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing has happened.Winston Churchill Some courts continue to attempt to justify premature dismissals of … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k litigation, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, 404c, 404c compliance, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, best interest, closet index funds, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost-efficiency, defined contribution, DOL, ERISA, ERISA litigation, evidence based investing, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, fiduciary standard, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, trust realtionships, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The InvestSense Challenge for Plan Sponsors: Key Fiduciary Liability Risk Management Questions

James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP EmeritusTM, AWMA® I often hear or read plan sponsors and other investment fiduciaries describing how hard their jobs are, how difficult it is to select and monitor their plan’s investment options and avoid fiduciary … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k litigation, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, 404c, 404c compliance, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Annuities, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, Cost_Efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, fiduciary standard, financial planning, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement planning, retirement plans, RIA, RIA Compliance, risk management, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

3Q 2023 AMVR “Cheat Sheets”: Fiduciary Law Benchmarks That Really Matter

The six funds shown are six of the leading non-index funds that are consistently offered in U.S. domestic defined contribution plans. My development of the Active Management Value Ratio (AMVR) metric was originally based on the work of Nobel laureate … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k litigation, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, closet index funds, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management, SCOTUS, Supreme Court | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why Smart Fiduciaries Avoid Annuities: “Humble Arithmetic,” Annuities, and Fiduciary Liability

By James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP Board Emeritus™, AWMA® [A] victim to the relentless rules of humble Arithmetic. Remember, O stranger, ‘Arithmetic is the first of the sciences and the mother of safety.’U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis Fiduciary … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k litigation, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, Annuities, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, fiduciary standard, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement planning, retirement plans, risk management, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Could the Matney and Home Depot Decisions Signal the End of the 401(k)/403(b) Litigation SNAFU? Are Plan Sponsors Really Ready?

By James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP Board Emeritus™, AWMA® People often ask me why I write and comment so much about the Matney case.1 As a fiduciary risk management counsel, my job is to monitor developments in fiduciary law … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k plan design, 401k plans, 401k risk management, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, fiduciary standard, investment advisers, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

2Q 2023 “Cheat Sheets”: Plan Sponsors’ IDK/FOFO Strategy and the Future of Fiduciary Liability and Litigation

By James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP Board Emeritus™, AWMA® An analysis of the 2Q “cheat sheets” can be summed up quite simply – “the song remains the same.” None of the six funds qualified for an AMVR score based … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k plan design, 401k risk management, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, investment advisers, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan advisers, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Interpreting the DOL’s Amicus Brief and its Potential Impact on the Future of 401(k) Litigation

By James W. Watkins, III, J.D., CFP Board Emeritus™, AWMA® Whenever I meet with a prospective new client, I first explain InvestSense’s “401(k) Fiduciary Prudence Circle,” (FP Circle), one of the cornerstones of our “Fiduciary InvestSense™” process. ERISA and the … Continue reading

Posted in 401k, 401k compliance, 401k investments, 401k plan design, 401k risk management, 403b, Active Management Value Ratio, AMVR, compliance, consumer protection, cost consciousness, cost efficient, cost-efficiency, Cost_Efficiency, ERISA, ERISA litigation, evidence based investing, fiduciary, fiduciary compliance, fiduciary duty, fiduciary law, fiduciary liability, fiduciary liability, Fiduciary prudence, fiduciary prudence, fiduciary responsibility, fiduciary risk management, fiduciary standard, investments, Mutual funds, pension plans, plan sponsors, prudence, retirement plans, risk management, SCOTUS, wealth management, wealth preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment