Fiduciary Governance Resource Library

Trustee Compensation

California Trusts and Estates Quarterly (Volume 27, Issue 1, 2021) How much is too much? Trustee Compensation and an Analysis of California Rules of Court, Rule 7.776

SAMPLE Proposal Letter for a Foundation

Developing a governance process is central to fulfilling the trustees’ duties to the Foundation.

SAMPLE Proposal Letter for a Trustee

If you want to know more about the service, select this link to see a draft Engagement Letter for a trustee.

The Emperor Has No Clothes

The investment industrial complex does not want you to know how to evaluate its members.

Sample Governance Audit

It’s not uncommon for disgruntled beneficiaries to bring lawsuits against trustees around the subject of “poor performance”. The fact patterns often look like this–low performance by the trust versus high performance from the S&P 500 (or other index) during that same period.

Why the “Passive vs. Active” Investment Debate is the Wrong Issue

The investment industry is embroiled in a “great debate” concerning which investment philosophy is best: active vs. passive management.

How is a targeted return like UBER?

A trustee would not get into an Uber until they defined the destination for their ride. A trustee would not hire an employee without describing at some level the work the employee was being hired to do.

A Business Manager’s Duty to Monitor the Risk and Return of their Clients’ Investment Portfolios

The Problem: You are a business manager and it is either explicitly or implicitly the case that you are responsible for monitoring the activities of the investment managers that have been entrusted with your clients’ capital.

Trust But Verify: Do Private Equity and Hedge Funds Deliver Superior Risk-adjusted Returns?

For several decades, the investment industry has promoted the virtues of hedge funds and private equity funds for large instructional investors and ultra high net worth individuals. But over the last few years these products have come under increased scrutiny because the hoped-for benefits have, for the most part, not materialized.

Bank v RIA as Investment Advisor: A Cost-Benefit Analysis

Many investors ask, “Is it better to have a big bank (Goldman Sachs, for example) as my investment advisor or a Registered Investment Advisor (Bel Air, for example) to manage my money?”

Investment Governance Best Practices for Business Managers (How to Watch the Hen House)

You are a business manager, and it is either explicitly or implicitly the case that you are responsible for monitoring the activities of the investment managers that have been entrusted with your clients’ capital.

Fiduciary Governance for an ERISA Trustee

Why size doesn’t matter.
In this eBook we discuss the various duties an ERISA trustee is expected to follow according to USC best practices.

Principal and Income Act Analysis

This case study illustrates the process we followed to explore one trustee’s authority to make adjustments between income and principal and options for how they might do so.

Understanding the Trustee’s Duty to Diversity

In this white paper, we discuss reasons for NOT diversifying the assets of a trust as well as reasons FOR doing so–all of which might satisfy the prudent investor standards under different circumstances.

Sample Delegation of Investment Duties

This sample document identifies the elements of a prudent delegation of investment duties. Without a “job description”, how can any employee know what they are being hired to accomplish, and how can periodic reviews be conducted?

Helping a Portfolio Grow

The money manager’s job is to care for your portfolio as if it was was their own. But we know that no one is going to care for your portfolio like you do. Of course, the money manager feels they’re doing a great job, but it’s a good idea to confirm if that’s the case.

Market Study: Average Investment Management Fees

In this market study by AdvisorHQ, they collected data from investment advisers across the country to identify industry-average fee levels for a range of portfolio sizes. This data can help you verify if your fees are consistent with industry norms.

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Investment Governance Overview

It’s difficult to answer the question, “Is my investment advisor doing a good job?” Predictably, all investment advisors report that they are “doing great” and are “above average.” In this free White Paper, we’ll address this difficult issue.

Trust But Verify: Do Private Equity and Hedge Funds Deliver Superior Risk-adjusted Returns?

For years, the investment industry has promoted the virtues of hedge funds and private equity funds for large instructional investors and ultra high net worth individuals. But over the last few years these products have come under increased scrutiny because the hoped-for benefits have, for the most part, not materialized.

The CPA and Attorney’s Introduction to Serving as a Trustee

In this ebook, we’ll provide a clear roadmap to help trustees understand their five core duties of care, and more importantly, how to fulfill these duties.

Benchmarking Principles and Construction

The evaluation of an investment manager requires tools for determining whether or not the manager took appropriate risk to earn the return needed in accomplishing the investor’s objectives. Without these benchmarking tools, no objective judgment about risk and return can be made. Without a plumb line it is impossible to know if the wall is straight.