Special Alert for Michigan-Based Investment Advisors

On March 11, 2010, OFIR Commissioner Ken Ross issued the "Fourth Transition Order Administering Michigan Uniform Securities Act, 2008 PA 551" (the "Fourth Transition Order"). You can find the Fourth Transition Order here.

The Fourth Transition Order does two things:

It extends the registration deadline for Investment Adviser Representatives (IARs) from July 1 to November 1, 2010; and If an IAR applicant submits his or her application before August 2, 2010, and if the applicant, the owner and the Chief Compliance Officer of the applicant's advisory firm employer submit a written IAR Certification and Consent Form Number FIS 0580, the applicant will not be subject to the examination requirement in the OFIR's First Transition Order.

Registration Deadline

Although the registration deadline has been extended, the OFIR is strongly recommending that applicants for IAR registration submit their U-4 applications through the Web CRD/IARD system no later than September 1, 2010, in order to allow sufficient time for processing. It warns that "an IAR whose application is not approved as of November 1, 2010, cannot conduct business in Michigan as an IAR until OFIR approves the IAR's application."

Examination Waiver

The OFIR's First Transition Order, issued last September, requires that an IAR applicant must have passed the Series 65 exam or both of the Series 66 and Series 2 exams within two years of applying for IAR status. The Fourth Transition Order eases up on this requirement for applicants who passed the exam more than two years prior to applying. To take advantage of this, the applicant must have been employed or engaged by one or more investment advisory firms without a break in service for more than two years since passing the necessary exam. Further, a certification of this fact must be signed by the applicant, by the owner or an authorized officer of the applicant's current employer advisory firm and by the CCO of that firm. The certification form also requires that the applicant agree to the entry of a consent order and a fine if the OFIR learns that the certification was false.

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