TORONTO, March 22, 2010 -- Financial and legal experts will discuss the investment advisor-client relationship at an upcoming conference co-hosted by the Canadian Foundation for the Advancement of Investor Rights (FAIR Canada) and York University’s Hennick Centre for Business and Law. The conference, entitled “The Fiduciary Standard and Beyond: Rethinking the Financial Advisor-Client Relationship,” will take place at The Conference Centre at the OBA (20 Toronto Street, 2nd floor) on Thursday, March 25, 2010 from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. Doug Melville, of the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments, will be the keynote speaker.
Speakers will provide Canadian and international perspectives, and will include scholars as well as regulatory and industry experts. In addition to Melville, other speakers include: Peter Smith, head of department, investments policy at the UK Financial Services Authority; Barbara Roper, director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America; Ellen Bessner, partner at Cassels Brock; Joseph Groia, principal of Groia & Company; and Susan Wolburgh Jenah, president and CEO of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada.
Panelists at the conference will be discussing the proposal in the US to implement a uniform fiduciary standard for all advisors and dealers. Topics will include the UK proposal to ban embedded commissions, conflict-of-interest situations and the recent financial crisis. The program’s ultimate objective is to inform and motivate relevant policy initiatives in Canada through discussion and comparative analysis.
A full conference brochure and link to register are available at the FAIR Canada and Hennick Centre Web sites.
The Hennick Centre for Business and Law is the first Canadian centre to promote and develop joint business and law scholarship and education. The Centre is a joint initiative of Osgoode Hall Law School and the Schulich School of Business at York University. This conference is part of a series of programs hosted by the Centre on issues at the intersection of law, business and public policy.
FAIR Canada is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to representing the interests of Canadian investors in securities regulation. The mission of FAIR Canada is to be a national voice for investors and a catalyst for the enhancement of the rights of Canadian shareholders and individual investors.
For further information, please contact:
Ilana Singer
Associate Director
FAIR Canada
416-572-2215
Archana Sridhar
Associate Director
Hennick Centre for Business and Law
416-736-5490
