DOL Fiduciary News: August 28, 2017

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DOL fiduciary rule: Trump administration signals intent to kill class-action provision in BICE

InvestmentNews; Aug 25, 2017 @ 11:45 am

The Trump administration has delivered what seems to be its clearest signal yet that it is seeking to remove the class-action-litigation provision from the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule.

In an Aug. 23 letter to Minnesota district court judge Susan Nelson, who is presiding over one of the ongoing lawsuits against the fiduciary rule, the Department of Justice wrote that the class-action provision "will likely be mooted in the near future."

The provision is one of the most reviled portions of the rule among opponents of the regulation, which raises investment advice standards in retirement accounts.
(http://www.investmentnews.com)

Latest DOL Fiduciary Fight Zeros In on Advice vs. Sales

ThinkAdvisor; August 25, 2017

Lawyers representing the Department of Labor and the nine plaintiffs suing Labor over its fiduciary rule recently filed briefs arguing their stance on whether Labor has the authority to regulate advice versus sales.

A three-judge panel heard oral arguments on Aug. 1 at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s appeal, which resulted from an adverse lower decision issued by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

At the oral arguments, the court asked the parties to file letter briefs addressing whether the participant/IRA exemption in the Pension Protection Act — for level fee and computer model advice — proves that Labor has authority to regulate sales, or brokers.
(http://www.thinkadvisor.com)