About Locker Financial Services, LLC
Locker Financial Services, LLC (Locker Financial) is a limited liability company formed
in February 2000 in the state of New Jersey. Locker Financial became registered as an
investment adviser firm in January 1994. The principal owners of the firm are Lauren
Locker, CFP® and Andrew Chan, CFP®, CIMA®. Ms. Locker and Mr. Chan make the
major decisions of a strategic and administrative nature for the firm.
This narrative brochure contains information regarding Locker Financial and the
qualifications, business practices, and nature of advisory services that the firm provides.
This information should be carefully considered before becoming an advisory client of
Locker Financial.
Prior to engaging Locker Financial to provide services, clients are generally required to
enter into an agreement with Locker Financial setting the terms and conditions of the
engagement (including termination), describing the scope of the services to be
provided, and specifying the portion of the fee that is due from the client prior to Locker
Financial beginning services.
Financial Planning and Consulting
Locker Financial offers broad-based financial planning services. Such advice will
typically involve providing a variety of services, principally advisory in nature, regarding
the management of the client’s financial resources based upon an analysis of each
client’s individual needs. The process typically begins with an initial complementary
consultation which gives all parties an opportunity to get acquainted. If the client
decides to engage Locker Financial for financial planning services, pertinent information
about the client’s personal and financial circumstances and objectivess collected.
Financial planning clients may also be required to complete an investment-related
questionnaire as part of the information gathering process. Locker Financial will
conduct follow-up interews, as needed, for the purpose of reviewing and/or collecting
financial data. Once such information has been studied and analyzed, a written financial
plan, designed to achieve the client’s expressed financial goals and objectives, will be
produced and presented to the client.
To the extent requested by the client, financial planning advice may be rendered in the
areas of business planning, retirement planning, personal tax and cash flow planning,
estate planning, insurance planning, college planning, and compensation and benefits
planning, among others.
LFS will prepare and present a financial plan which shows the client multiple scenarios
based upon previously-agreed-upon parameters, detail each plan component, suggest
action steps for implementation, explain any concepts the client does not immediately
understand completely, and leave time for plenty of questions. The plan includes a
digital document for the client to take away for future reference. It also includes a
reasonable number of follow-up phone calls or emails that may be required to resolve
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issues that come up during implementation. This model usually requires the client to be
available soon after the initial get-to-know-you meeting for several pre-presentation
phone calls/emails, as well as for a presentation meeting that lasts 2-3 hours. LFS
strives to complete the portion of the planning work in 6-8 weeks after receipt of the
client deposit.
Financial plans are based on the client’s financial situation at the time the plan is
presented and are dependent on financial information disclosed by the client to Locker
Financial. Clients are advised that certain assumptions may be made about interest and
inflation rates and that plans may use past trends and past performance of the market
and economy. Past performance is in no way an indication of future performance.
Locker Financial cannot offer any guarantees or promises that the client’s financial
goals and objectives will be met. As the client’s financial situation, goals, objectives, or
needs change, the client must notify Locker Financial promptly.
In performing services, Locker Financial shall not be required to verify any information
received from the client or from the client’s other professional advisors (e.g., attorney,
accountant, etc.) and is expressly authorized to rely on such information as presented.
If requested by the client, Locker Financial may recommend the services of other
professionals for implementation purposes. The client is under no obligation to engage
the services of any such recommended professional. The client retains absolute
discretion over all such implementation decisions and is free to accept or reject any
recommendation from Locker Financial. If a client engages any such recommended
professional, and a dispute arises thereafter relative to such engagement, the client
agrees to seek recourse exclusively from and against the engaged professional. It
remains the client’s responsibility to promptly notify Locker Financial if there is ever any
change in the client’s financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of
reviewing/evaluation/revising Locker Financial's previous recommendations and/or
services. Locker Financial does not receive referral fees for providing such
recommendations to clients.
Investment Management
Upon completion of the initial financial planning services, the client may engage Locker
Financial to provide both ongoing financial planning and investment management on a
fee-only basis. The scope of the ongoing annual financial planning and/or related
consultation services to be rendered by Locker Financial as part of the annual fee is
generally intended to be limited to reviewing/evaluating/revising Locker Financial’s
previous recommendations and/or services relative to a change in the client’s financial
situation and/or investment objectives.
Subject to any written guidelines which the client may provide, Locker Financial will be
granted discretion and authority to manage the account. Accordingly, Locker Financial
is authorized to perform various functions, at the client’s expense, without further
approval from the client. Such functions include making all investment decisions on the
(a) securities purchased/sold and (b) the amount of securities to be purchased/sold.
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Once the portfolio is constructed, Locker Financial provides ongoing supervision and re-
balancing of the portfolio as changes in market conditions and client circumstances may
require.
Locker Financial primarily allocates the investment management assets of its client
accounts among various mutual fund classes, (and to a
much lesser extent, among
various individual debt and equity securities), on a discretionary basis, in accordance
with the investment objectives of the client. Unless the client directs otherwise, Locker
Financial shall primarily recommend that all investment management accounts be
maintained at Charles Schwab and Co., Inc. (“Schwab”).
After consultation with Locker Financial, clients may impose restrictions on investing in
certain securities or types of securities. Other restrictions may be imposed by clients
with respect to the (average or longest) maturity or credit quality of fixed income
investments. In either case, all restrictions must be in writing.
Retirement Rollovers-No Obligation/Conflict of Interest: A client leaving an employer
typically has four options (and may engage in a combination of these options): 1) leave
the money in his/her former employer’s plan, if permitted, 2) roll over the assets to
his/her new employer’s plan, if one is available and rollovers are permitted, 3) rollover to
an Individual Retirement Account (IRA), or 4) cash out the account value (which could,
depending upon the client’s age, result in adverse tax consequences).
Locker Financial may recommend an investor roll over plan assets to an IRA managed
by Locker Financial. As a result, Locker Financial may earn an asset-based fee;
however, a recommendation that a client or prospective client leave their plan assets
with their old employer will result in no compensation. Locker Financial has an
economic incentive to encourage an investor to roll plan assets into an IRA that Locker
Financial will manage.
There are various factors that Locker Financial may consider before recommending a
rollover, including but not limited to: i) the investment options available in the plan
versus the investment options available in an IRA, ii) fees and expenses in the plan
versus the fees and expenses in an IRA, iii) the services and responsiveness of the
plan’s investment professionals versus those of Locker Financial, iv) required minimum
distributions and age considerations, and vi) employer stock tax consequences, if any.
No client is under any obligation to roll over plan assets to an IRA managed by Locker
Financial.
When we provide investment advice to you regarding your retirement plan account or
individual retirement account, we are fiduciaries within the meaning of Title I of the
Employee Retirement Income Security Act and/or the Internal Revenue Code, as
applicable, which are laws governing retirement accounts. The way we make money
creates some conflicts with your interests, so we operate under a special rule that
requires us to act in your best interest and not put our interests ahead of yours.
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Under this special rule’s provisions, we must:
• Meet a professional standard of care when making investment recommendations
(give prudent advice);
• Never put our financial interests ahead of yours when making recommendations
(give loyal advice);
• Avoid misleading statements about conflicts of interest, fees, and investments;
• Follow policies and procedures designed to ensure that we give advice that is in
your best interest;
• Charge no more than is reasonable for our services; and
• Give you basic information about conflicts of interest.
Educational seminars/workshops
Ms. Locker and Mr. Chan and their staff are available to speak on a variety of financial
topics, including retirement and elder care planning. The presentation can be tailored to
the specific needs of the audience. There is no charge for this service.
Trade Error Policy
Any losses that occur in client accounts as the result of trade errors made by Locker
Financial Services will be reimbursed by either Locker Financial or the custodian,
depending on the dollar amount.
Client Obligations
In performing its services, Locker Financial is not required to verify any information
received from the client or from the client’s other professionals. Moreover, each client is
advised that it remains his or her responsibility to promptly notify Locker Financial if
there is ever any change in the client’s financial situation or investment objectives
during the client engagement.
Disclosure Statement
A copy of Locker Financial’s written brochure as set forth on Part 2 of Form ADV shall
be provided to each client prior to, or at the same time as, the execution of an
Investment Advisory Agreement. Any client who has not received a copy of Locke
Financial’s written brochure at least 48 hours prior to executing an Investment Advisory
Agreement shall have five business days subsequent to executing the agreement to
terminate Locker Financial’s services without penalty.
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Non-Participation in Wrap Fee Programs
Locker Financial, as a matter of policy and practice, does not sponsor any wrap fee
program. A wrap fee program is defined as any advisory program under which a
specified fee or fees not based directly upon transactions in a client’s account is
charged for investment supervisory services (which may include portfolio management
or advice concerning the selection of other investment advisers) and the execution of
client transactions.
Amount of Assets Under Management
As of December 31, 2022, Locker Financial had $127,555,047 in assets under
management on a discretionary basis and no assets under management on a
nondiscretionary basis.
Our Policy on Class Action Lawsuits
From time to time, securities held in the accounts of clients may be the subject of class
action lawsuits. Locker Financial has no obligation to determine if securities held by the
client are subject to a pending or resolved class action lawsuit. It also has no duty to
evaluate a client’s eligibility or to submit a claim to participate in the proceeds of a
securities class action settlement or verdict. Furthermore, Locker Financial has no
obligation or responsibility to initiate litigation to recover damages on behalf of clients
who may have been injured as a result of actions, misconduct, or negligence by
corporate management of issuers whose securities are held by clients.
Where Locker Financial receives written or electronic notice of a class action lawsuit,
settlement, or verdict affecting securities owned by a client, it will forward all notices,
proof of claim forms, and other materials, to the client. Electronic mail is acceptable
where appropriate if the client has authorized contact in this manner.
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