Former top cop at Finra joins LPL

LPL Financial LLC has hired one of the biggest guns in the securities regulation business, announcing today that James Shorris, a former top official at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc., is joining the firm. Mr. Shorris has deep roots in Washington. At Finra, he served as head of enforcement, where, he directed investigations of broker-dealers and registered representatives. Mr. Shorris left the self-regulatory organization in April. While he will not be a designated lobbyist for LPL, he will assist with the B-D's government relations strategy and efforts on Capitol Hill. In addition, Mr. Shorris' job will include working with the Securities and Exchange Commission and Finra. Indeed, in an interview Friday afternoon, the former Finra official stated that part of his new job at LPL would be to look carefully at new supervisory rules that the regulator proposed earlier this year. “There are implications for firms like LPL and its supervisory structure,” he said. Mr. Shorris’ new title will be executive vice president and associate counsel for regulatory and compliance policy. He will be based in Boston and report both to general counsel Stephanie Brown and chief risk officer John McDermott, chief risk officer. "Jim's many years of high-level experience in the regulation of securities firms, coupled with his strong network of industry and governmental relationships, make him an invaluable addition to our legal and compliance teams,” Ms. Brown said in a statement. She added: “We look forward to working together with him to secure the best possible services and outcomes for all parties: clients, advisers and the firm alike." LPL — the largest publicly traded independent broker-dealer in the U.S. — has 12,000 registered reps and advisers, most of them working in small one or two man offices. “The firm has grown tremendously," Mr. Shorris noted, "both its number of advisers and its infrastructure."