Regulation

Exemptions and the chance to opt out have lawyers predicting the $40 million proposed deferred compensation plan settlement will not cease litigation against Merrill Lynch.

Our legal analyst explores commission sharing and FINRA disclosure rules.

A run-down of the stories in this issue, including how shifting demographics can open new markets; the special needs of gay and lesbian couples; a look at dividend stocks; and Merrill Lynch's deferred compensation settlement.

Goldman Sachs will pay $12 million to settle charges it made undisclosed contributions to a former Massachusetts state treasurer in violation of "pay-to-play" rules.

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner asked the Financial Stability Oversight Council to take up structural reforms to the $2.6 trillion money market mutual fund industry, citing the Securities and Exchange Commission's failure to act.

Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner put pressure on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to tighten oversight of the $2.6 trillion money- market fund industry, saying the funds may pose a risk to the stability of the financial system.

London-based ETFGI has added Feargal Dempsey as a partner and Legal Counsel.

A new arbitration decision holds a lesson for financial advisors: Be careful when you leap.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed civil and criminal charges against a Pennsylvania man accused of defrauding elderly investors by issuing phony account statements inflating the value of his clients' accounts, and then pilfering funds from another client in a repayment scheme.

The U.S. Department of Labor's new regulations on 401(k) fee disclosures will serve as a wake-up call to plan sponsors and participants alike, once they stop hitting the snooze alarm, that is.