Morningstar Columnist Scott Simon Named Fiduciary of Year

The Committee for the Fiduciary Standard on Thursday announced that it had named Morningstar columnist W. Scott Simon as Fiduciary of the Year for his contributions to advancing the role of the authentic fiduciary standard.

Simon is a lawyer, certified planner and accredited investment fiduciary analyst, and also the author of “The Prudent Investor Act: A Guide to Understanding.” In addition, Simon writes the monthly “Fiduciary Focus” column for Morningstar Advisor that offers insights on a variety of fiduciary investment issues and advocates for higher standards of care. He is also the author of “The Prudent Investor Act: A Guide to Understanding.”

As an expert on the Uniform Prudent Investor Act and the Restatement 3rd of Trusts (the Prudent Investor Rule), Simon is credited by the Committee for the Fiduciary Standard for embodying its five core fiduciary duties:

• Put the client’s best interests first
• Act with prudence, meaning with the skill, care, diligence and good judgment of a professional
• Avoid misleading clients–provide conspicuous, full and fair disclosure of all important facts
• Avoid conflicts of interest
• Disclose fully and fairly manage, in the client’s favor, unavoidable conflicts

“Scott, with his combination of legal expertise and work as an investment advisor, has made numerous outstanding contributions to the cause of advancing the vital role of the fiduciary standard to investors, capital markets and society,” said Roger Gibson, chief investment officer of Gibson Capital and the chairman of the Committee for the Fiduciary Standard, in a statement.