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Howard,
I am researching on the logistics of opening an investment adviser firm. How important is a "legal counsel?" The firm will probably needs a legal counsel to draft up a client/adviser agreement [similar to this
.]http://www.evergreenfinancialadvisors.com/documents/investment_mgmt_agreement.pdf].
A person can write an agreement similar to that but it wouldn't be too smart to not have a lawyer.
Thanks!
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I would say critical. I have no idea what the regulatory environment is for such firms, but I submit that regulatory noncompliance would be a death knell for a financial advisory form. The link doesn't work, but I'm guessing the agreement is a client agreement designed to ward off suitability or churning claims. I've litigated a couple, and the agreements do matter -- so my strong advice is to hire counsel.