CFA Institute Exam CFA-Level-II Topic 2 Question 98 Discussion

Mike Zonding, CFA, is conducting a background check on CFA candidate Annie Cooken, a freshly nudled MBA who applied for a stock-analysis job at his firm, Khasko Financiar.vZoftding does not like to hire anyone who does not adhere to the Code and Standards' professional conduct requirements.

The background check reveals the following:

(i) While doing a full-time, unpaid internship at Kale Investments, Cooken was reprimanded for working a 30-hour-a-week night job as a waitress.

(ii) As an intern at Lammar Corp., Cooken was fired after revealing to the FBI that one of the principals was embezzling from the firm's clients.

(iii) Cooken performed 40 hours of community service in relation to a conviction on a misdemeanor drug possession charge when she was 16 years old.

(iv) On her resume, Cooken writes, "Recently passed Level 2 of the CFA exam, a test that measures candidates' knowledge of finance and investing."

During the interview, Zonding asks Cooken several questions on ethics-related issues, including questions about the role of a fiduciary and Standard III(E) Preservation of Confidentiality. He asks her about her internship at Kale Investments, specifically about the working hours. Cooken replies that the internship turned out to require more time than she originally planned, up to 65 hours per week.

Zonding subsequently hires Cooken and functions as her supervisor. On her third day at the money management boutique firm, portfolio manager Steven Garrison hands her a report on Mocline Tobacco and tells her to revise the report to reflect a buy rating. Cooken is uncomfortable about revising the report.

To supplement the meager income from her entry-level stock-analysis job, Cooken looks for part-time work. She is offered a position working three hours each Friday and Saturday night tending bar at a sports bar and grill downtown. Cooken does not tell her employer about the job.

During her first week, Cooken has lunch with former MBA classmates, including Taira Basch, CFA, who works for the compliance officer at a large investment bank in town. Basch arrives late, explaining, "What a day, it's only noon and already I have worked on the following requests:

1. A federal regulator called and wanted information on potentially illegal activities related to one of the firm's key clients.

2. A rival company's employee wanted information regarding employment opportunities at the firm.

3. A potential client contacted an employee and wanted detailed performance records of client accounts so he can decide whether to invest with the firm."

Basch goes on to say that she is responsible for developing a presentation on the differences between the Prudent Investor and the Prudent Man rules for managing trust portfolios. Basch explains to Cooken that the Prudent Investor rule requires a trustee to exercise five fiduciary standards in managing the assets of a trust account, including care, skill, caution, loyalty, and impartiality. She states that although there are many differences between the Prudent Man and the newer Prudent Investor rule, one element of continuity is the duty of the trustee to delegate investment authority in the event that the trustee lacks sufficient investment knowledge.

Toward the end of the lunch meeting, Basch suggests that in exchange for research published by Cooken and Khasko, Basch can have portfolio managers at her firm send clients that are too small for their firm to Khasko. Since Khasko specializes in clients with smaller portfolios, the arrangement sounds like a good idea to Cooken. Cooken tells Basch that she will think the arrangement over and get back with her next week with a decision.

According to CFA Institute Standards of Professional Conduct, which of the following statements is most accurate with regard to the arrangement proposed by Basch to Cooken?