No Fiduciary Rule? No Big Deal

The Fiduciary Rule, imposed by the Labor Department and limited to retirement accounts (although the resulting switch from brokerage commissions to annual fees was more sweeping) is dead.

Two reasons why the period of mourning can be brief:

1. In the bad old days, high-cost investments sold by brokers were typically cats and dogs – stocks with a high potential for becoming worthless. Today's investors are less likely to lose everything in products sold by non-fiduciaries. Instead, higher expenses will reduce their returns.

2. Although 40 percent of investors are said not to know what they pay in expenses, the shift from commissions to fees has made investment costs more transparent. And today's investors are far more likely to ask  their advisers, "Are you a fiduciary?"

Fiduciaries are easy to find – bank trust units and independent advisory firms are everywhere.  All the prudent investor has to do is hire one.