(1888PressRelease)
January 22, 2008 - Brookfield, WI - The Board of Directors of Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. (CFP Board) adopted a revised version of its Standards of Professional Conduct, which set forth the ethical standards for CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals. The revised ethical standards apply to the more than 54,500 financial planners in the U.S. who are authorized by CFP Board to use the CFP® certification marks. The revised standards become effective July 1, 2008.
The revised standards require a CFP® professional to “at all times place the interest of the client ahead of his or her own.” The new language replaces the lower standard of “reasonable and prudent professional judgment” contained in CFP Board’s current Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility.
The revised standards also require CFP® professionals who provide financial planning services do so with the duty of care of a “fiduciary,” a term partly defined as acting “in the best interest of the client.” The heightened duty of care significantly strengthens the current requirement that financial planning services be performed “in the interest of the client.”
Quest CE, an approved provider of continuing education for the CFP Board of Standards, has numerous courses to help financial professionals fulfill their CE requirements. With course topics ranging from insurance products like annuities, VUL, long term care, and disability income insurance to investment-based courses like retirement planning, college savings plans, and asset allocation, Quest has everything needed to meet the CFP Board’s requirement in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
Quest CE will file a new Ethics Course geared to meet the new standards set forth by the CFP Board and expects approval in the near future. The new online Ethics course will be priced at $12.95 and can be found on Quest CE’s CFP website at: www.questcfpcontinuingeducation.com.
About Quest CE
Over the past 20-plus years, Quest CE has built a reputation of being the premier provider of Compliance Solutions to the financial services industry. In addition to offering CE for professionals holding insurance licenses and professional designations like the CFP, CIMA, CLU/ChFC, and CPA designations, we also provide a complete spectrum of financial compliance training solutions.
