Investment Advisers Act of 1940

The Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (known as the Investment Advisers Act and accessible on the SEC's Website here) is a key piece of US Legislation on the topic of Investment Management. It should not be confused with the Investment Company Act of 1940 (known colloquially as the 40 Act, which is different, albeit also a key piece of US investment management legislation, also enacted in 1940.

Both strike righteous fear into the hearts of US securities attorneys and glum resignation in the spleens of their clients. Fear, for US attorneys, of an exhilarating sort which floods the gizzard with adrenaline the way it does when you lean forward into a bungee jump. It feels a bit like bungy jumping for clients, too. Only from the perspective of the bridge.

Bungee jumping is an apt metaphor, because as soon as the 40 Act is mentioned in forensic conversation, attorneys will jump (for joy) off the client's bridge and gleefully bounce up and down in the revenue stream drifting on below as long as they possibly can.