Rand Report: Investors don't understand standards of care

The Rand report is in.

This report was the SEC-commissioned research looking into investor understanding of advisers versus brokers. It arose out of the Merrill Lynch Rule litigation.

The report says (and this isn't really a surprise): "Even though we made attempts to explain fiduciary duty and suitability in plain language, focus-group participants struggled to understand the differences in standards of care [and] expressed doubt that the standards differ in practice."

What's more, most investors are happy with their financial service providers--whether broker or adviser--the report said.