Forget your feelings about attorneys. If nothing else law schools have one thing right. They need to break down students before they can build ‘em up again. Why? To think in a certain way means to stop thinking another way.

In the financial planning world we fight the same battle. It’s emotionally and physically draining getting clients to move from their spots – to give up their beliefs conditioned by the popular press and Big Media.

Information is inherently neutral. The problem is when it’s bad information. How is the average person to know the difference?

Today’s disservice is brought to us by MarketWatch in the form of a recent article by “expert” Spencer Williams. He suggests people should take their 401(k) accounts from prior employers and roll them into the 401(k) plan at their current employer.

His reasoning is sound (at best) yet his justifications show an utter cluelessness.

“Leaving small accounts behind when changing jobs can also endanger your retirement savings…(as) accounts automatically roll(ed)…into safe harbor IRAs…lose money on management fees.”

Someone please get smelling salts for the “expert” Mr. Williams. Unless he’s been living in a cave on Mars with his eyes closed and fingers in his ears he’d know the lack of fee disclosure by 401(k) plan providers is a HUGE issue. A quick Google search will yield hundreds if not thousands of articles about the money stolen from 401(k) plan participants by the providers of the plans using a myriad of inflated and often hidden fees.

If cost is his gripe he could have suggested one of the MANY options for no-fee accounts at any of the so-called discount brokers.

Furthermore our expert du jour has failed to mention an incredibly important point. By rolling an old 401(k) into a new one an investor is intentionally limiting his/her investment options. How many choices are in your 401(k)? Five? Ten? Twenty? How many of them are worthy of investment? The “set it and forget it” target-date funds? C’mon!

By moving an old 401(k) to an IRA an investor has access to thousands of mutual funds, ETFs, CDs, individual bonds, MLPs, etc. Broad exposure to asset classes and ability to select best of breed within those classes is a tremendous improvement over the limits of a 401(k).

Shame on you Mr. Williams for the shoddy advice and double shame on you MarketWatch for trying to hide your attempt to attract eyeballs.