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The law firm that administrates the Protocol for Broker Recruiting Agreement delayed sharing the news that Morgan Stanley was withdrawing from the arrangement, according to some industry observers, potentially narrowing a critical window of time for any employee advisors planning to leave the brokerage firm for another while under the agreement’s protection.
At issue is the timing of the announcements by both Morgan Stanley, and the administrator of the protocol, law firm Bressler, Amery & Ross.
Morgan Stanley submitted its intention to withdraw from the agreement in a letter, reviewed by WealthManagement.com, sent to the law firm on Tuesday Oct. 24. In accordance with the rules, firms must give a ten-day notice of their intent to abandon the agreement; Morgan Stanley’s letter noted its final day would be Nov. 3.
Some observers say it is no coincidence that the notification was sent one day after the administrator distributes its official weekly update of changes detailing which firms have joined the agreement and which are leaving. Given...