Howard Diamond Quoted
By Bruce Kelly
Morgan Stanley’s decision to leave an industry agreement known as the protocol for broker recruiting is an indication that the firm is working harder than ever to prevent its brokers from jumping ship, industry sources said.
One veteran adviser wondered whether a non-solicit agreement could be applied to existing accounts or only to new clients. “Would that be supported for accounts retroactively or newly opened,” asked the adviser, who requested to speak anonymously. He added that he had not seen anything in writing from the company about a new non-solicit agreement.
“A non-solicit means advisers can’t reach out to clients but [clients] can reach out to advisers,” noted Howard Diamond, chief operating officer and general counsel for Diamond Consultants, an industry recruiter. “In the fiduciary era, clients want to go with their advisers. We think this is incredibly short-sighted and takes adviser choice away.”
