The following letters were sent by R.F.P.®s to the Chairs and Chief Operating Officer of the CLU Institute and/or Advocis regarding the current CLU Institute trademark infringement issue. The letters are reprinted here with the authors’ permission. The IAFP® encourages all other R.F.P.®s associated with the CLU Institute or Advocis to make their views known, as suggested in this Member Bulletin.
Hello Richard,
I saw today the name change for the CLU Institute and find history repeating itself. I am a past trustee and vice-chair of The Institute and past board member of LUAC and CAIFA. Also past President of the Toronto CLU Chapter. I currently sit on the board of the Canadian Pension and Benefits Institute (CPBI) and am a member of CALU.
I sat on the board when we dismantled the CLU Institute in the ’90s and went through our first name change. Also I was there as we discussed the merger with the CAFP.
A recurring theme with all these decisions (and now with this one it seems) is to distance us from the ‘risk management-insurance’ work we were founded upon and still practice–remove any language that sounds like insurance or sales — be a ‘professional’ association to and for ‘all people’. As stated in Greg’s letter “…to reposition The Institute, its designations, and its services to larger audiences within the financial services industry.”
We have been doing this for 20 years now (CAIFA became Advocis–TFAAC) and our membership has continued to decline; our brand is no more known today by my clients/prospects as it was 20 years ago; we actually blend in more with other association names (i.e., IAFP®–Institute of Advanced Financial Planners™ that I also belong to).
I felt then as I do now that we would be better served standing out as a life and health and wealth insurance assoc.–people who help our clients ‘manage risk’; not trying to be more than that to attract a broader audience — this has not worked!
Sincerely from an Interested Member,
Mike
W. Michael Thomas, CFP, CLU, CH.F.C., R.F.P.®, GBA; The Investment Guild; Markham, Ontario
Dear Terry & Greg,
I have been an Advocis member for several years, but have held the Registered Financial Planner (R.F.P.®) designation Issued by the Institute of Advanced Financial Planners™ (IAFP®) since 1987.
I am very disappointed to hear that you have changed the name of the CLU Institute to the institute for Advanced Financial Education (IAFE), I definitely feel that this will create confusion amongst the public and advisors. There has been several discussions over the last few years to simplify the association names and designations to make them clearly identifiable and less confusing to the public.
This change has made it worse as the two names sound almost identical, perhaps the IAFP® should change its name to Advocix!
A good number of the IAFP® membership are also members of Advocis, perhaps we should encourage them to resign from Advocis, it has sure made me seriously consider not renewing my Advocis Membership.
I hope this issue can be resolved very soon.
Dave Vaughan, CFP, R.F.P.®; The Vaughan Team; Hamilton, Ontario
To Whom It May Concern;
A year ago I let my membership in Advocis lapse. At the time I felt the organization was not adequately representing the interests of advisors who practice comprehensive financial planning. I am glad I made this decision and cannot foresee returning as a member.
The CLU Institute “is the leading designation body in Canada for financial services practitioners in the specialty areas of Advanced Estate and Wealth Transfer, and Living Benefits”. You may recognize that phrase from your website. Your decision to re-brand the CLU Institute as an advanced financial education organization implies that it is broader in its mandate than it truly is. That is misleading and therefore contrary to public interest. It is also intrusive on the name of the Institute of Advanced Financial Planners™ and their R.F.P.® designation.
It is disappointing that following supposedly concerted efforts on behalf of the Financial Planning Task Force that you would make such a divisive decision. The public needs our help, not more confusion.
My assistant is currently enrolled in one of your courses. It will be my instruction to her to register with another organization as I cannot support yours. This will also be my message to my numerous colleagues.
Yours truly,
Jacquie Skinner BA, CFP, R.F.P.®.; Premier Financial Planning Services; Midland, Ontario
To Advocis
Re. Your egregious behaviour:
Shabby treatment provided members at the last national conference held in Victoria forced my resignation. No longer would I be herded like sheep into conference rooms incorrectly signed, or turned away because the room was full — only to hear sales pitches masked as “education.”
Your recent conversion of the CLU Institute into the so-called The Institute for Advanced Financial Education proves, again, the decision to resign was the correct one. How could one belong to an organization that would so brazenly infringe on the goodwill, name, and trademark rights of The Institute of Advanced Financial Planners™?
Is it, not having a good idea of your own, you need to steal one? Or is it, running out of your own members to treat poorly, you need to treat others just as shabbily? For shame.
John Q. Gregg, CFP, R.F.P.®; Discovery Islands Financial Services; Quathiaski Cove, B.C.
Good morning,
Having gone through name changes before and deciding which Association(s) to be a member of over my 35 years in the “business” I find it disheartening to have such prestigious Associations trying, again, to “one-up” the other guy. As a long standing member of Advocis (1983), Halifax, an RFP with the IAFP® since 1987 and the first CFP in Nova Scotia with the previous CAFP (1983) it seems to be making it easier to decide NOT to renew my membership this year with Advocis.
Can’t we all get along together without this silliness all the time? …just my thoughts…
Norm Jagger, R.F.P.; Bedford, Nova Scotia
Gentlemen,
I have been a loyal dues paying member of Advocis (CAIFA, CAFP) for better than 15 years of my 26 year career as a financial planner. I have also held my life license since 1986. But I will no longer be a member and support an arrogant self-serving institution which is no more in my mind than a puppet of the insurance industry.
I have reluctantly held membership even when the over-emphasis on insurance sales, insurance product education and insurance advice far outweighed any non-product related financial planning advice or education.
But what really pisses me off is the absolute disdain Advocis and the CLU Institute have shown for their insistence on the adoption of the new name for the CLU as IAFE. This shows absolutely no respect for another very professional organization, the IAFP®, long in existence before the insurance heads came up with the new name. In a time where we should be concerned with clarity of presence and presentation to a public already wary of the professionalism of our industry CLU has elected to muddy the waters further.
And given that the emphasis with the CLU is mostly insurance related education and product how can CLU have the audacity to promote itself as an instrument of advanced financial education? An institute of advanced INSURANCE education I can buy.
So I will direct my funds otherwise earmarked for my Advocis renewal to the IAFP® where they will serve to foster and promote true professionalism in financial planning.
Sincerely,
Murray A. Child, CFP, R.F.P.; President, MDK/Child Financial Advisors; Independent Planning Group Inc.; Waterloo, Ontario
FROM THE IAFP®: Thank you, Murray, for redirecting your Advocis fees to support the IAFP®’s “challenge to the CLU Institute”.
Last updated: 21 Jul 2019 11:55 PM
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