Parker MacIntyre Attorney Bob Terry Joins Emory Law School Adjunct Faculty for the Sixth Year — January 2020

For the sixth consecutive year, Parker MacIntyre Of Counsel Robert D. Terry is an adjunct professor at Emory University School of Law, where he teaches an upper-level class on broker-dealer regulation. One of the few courses of its kind offered in any law school in the United States, Bob’s class serves to introduce law students to the laws and regulations that govern the operation of securities broker-dealers and other industry participants. The course covers such material as registration obligations, exemptions, and the overall FINRA rule structure, with emphasis on key FINRA rules and enforcement of those rules through administrative or other actions. Bob’s course focuses on the practical application of rules to the operation of broker-dealers and also includes the interplay between brokerage law and the law relating to mutual funds, private funds, investment advisers and other financial professionals.

The broker-dealer class is a complement to the law school’s other securities-related offerings, which usually include a securities regulation class covering the 1933 Act’s registration provisions, anti-fraud rules and considerations relating to the definition of a “security,” as well as a class focusing on securities enforcement. The school also typically offers a “deal-making” class, which necessarily touches on topics relating to securities offerings.

Bob uses current cases as a basis for many of the topics covered. For example, a discussion of the concept of “suitability” and FINRA Rule 2111 will typically include having the students read one or two recent administrative case opinions on the topic. “I find that having the students see a real-life example of the issues that arise in a broker-client relationship helps add some life to what could otherwise be a pretty dry concept,” Bob said.

Bob’s students have been a mix of second and third-year students, and a few LLM candidates. One of the more interesting groups of students have been foreign students, many of who have had experience in the securities industry in their home countries and who want to learn about how the US industry is regulated.

Bob says that many students taking his class often already have a strong interest in the securities industry, and often take one or more of the other classes.“It’s really a pleasure to have several students in class who have experience in the industry, either through internships with the SEC or work experience with an industry member,” he said, “but sometimes they can keep my on my toes with their questions.” At least one of his students had a Series 7 license, and one semester two students had held jobs the previous summer with hedge funds.

After graduating from Emory, several of Bob’s students have gone on to positions involving the securities industry, either in private practice, in-house or with a regulator. Several have kept in touch after graduation, which Bob finds “very rewarding.” One student, capitalizing on his experience in the class, approached the state securities regulator in his home state and convinced him to create a fellowship allowing the student to be on the enforcement staff for a year, enabling the new graduate to gain valuable practical experience in a regulatory setting as a precursor to a career in the industry.

Bob says, “This has been a great experience for me, and I hope to continue it as long as the Law School sees the value in having this class as part of its securities curriculum. It’s been a great experience to meet so many students from different backgrounds and helping them learn something about an industry that I have been a part of for so many years.”