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Firm Brochure
(Part 2A form ADV)
March 26, 2025
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC
625 Kenmoor Ave, Suite 209
Grand Rapids, MI 49546
Phone Number: (616) 942-1580
Fax Number: (616) 942-6852
This ADV 2A brochure (“Brochure”) provides information about the qualifications and business practices of LaFleur
& Godfrey LLC (“LaFleur & Godfrey,” “we” or the “Firm”). If you have any questions about the contents of this
brochure, please contact John Dice at: (616) 942-1580, or by email at: johnd@lafleurgodfrey.com. The information
in this brochure has not been approved or verified by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or by
any state securities authority.
Additional information about LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is available on the SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
You can find us by searching our name, or our unique identifying number, known as a CRD number, which is 168831.
Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training.
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Item 2 - Material Changes
Investment advisers are required to provide their clients with a summary of material changes made to their Brochure
since the time of the last annual updating amendment and offer to provide the entire brochure free of charge. In this
section, we discuss changes made to our Brochure since the time of our last annual updating amendment on March
31, 2024. Since that time, we have made the following changes:
Chris Walker officially retired from his role as President of Investment Counsel, a division of LaFleur & Godfrey,
effective May 1, 2024. Chris remains available and supportive to LaFleur & Godfrey as he transitions into retirement.
We help our clients obtain certain insurance solutions by introducing clients to our affiliate, Focus Risk Solutions,
LLC (“FRS”). If FRS places an insurance product for our client or refers our client to an insurance broker and there
is a subsequent purchase of insurance through the broker, then FRS will receive a portion of the upfront and/or ongoing
commissions associated with the sale by the insurance carrier with which the policy was placed. The amount of
insurance commission revenue earned by FRS is considered for purposes of determining the amount of additional
compensation that certain of our financial professionals are entitled to receive. Additionally, certain of these brokers
pay FRS periodic fees to participate in the FRS platform and, thereby, to offer their services to our clients and certain
of our affiliates’ clients. Further information on this conflict of interest is available in Items 4, 5 and 10 of this
Brochure.
We offer clients the option of obtaining certain financial solutions from unaffiliated third-party financial institutions
through UPTIQ Treasury & Credit Solutions, LLC (together with UPTIQ, Inc. and its affiliates, “UPTIQ”) and
Flourish Financial LLC (“Flourish”). UPTIQ and Flourish are compensated by sharing in the revenue earned by such
third-party institutions for serving our clients. When legally permissible, UPTIQ and Flourish each shares a portion
of this earned revenue with an affiliate of our firm. The affiliate distributes this revenue to us when we are licensed
to receive such revenue (or when no such license is required) and the distribution is not otherwise legally prohibited.
Further information on this conflict of interest is available in Items 4, 5, and 10 of this Brochure.
Lafleur & Godfrey has started to recommend certain private fund investments to qualified clients. Items 4, 5, and 8
have been revised to reflect this change.
Clients are encouraged to review the Brochure in its entirety. A complete copy of our Brochure, free of charge, is
available by contacting us by telephone at: (616) 942-1580 or by email at: johnd@lafleurgodfrey.com.
Additional information about LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is available on the SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.
You can find us by searching our name, or our unique identifying number, known as a CRD number, which is 168831.
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Item 3 – Table of Contents
Item 2 - Material Changes ........................................................................................................................................ 2
Item 4 - Advisory Business ...................................................................................................................................... 5
Firm History .......................................................................................................................................................... 5
Focus Financial Partners ...................................................................................................................................... 5
Firm Management ................................................................................................................................................ 5
Our Services .......................................................................................................................................................... 5
Additional Services .............................................................................................................................................. 6
Discretionary Client Assets ................................................................................................................................. 7
Item 5 – Fees and Compensation............................................................................................................................. 7
Description ............................................................................................................................................................ 7
Fee Billing ............................................................................................................................................................. 8
3(21) Fiduciary Services ...................................................................................................................................... 8
Other Fees ............................................................................................................................................................. 8
Termination of Agreement ................................................................................................................................... 9
Item 6 - Performance-Based Fees and Side by Side Management ....................................................................... 9
Sharing of Capital Gains ...................................................................................................................................... 9
Item 7 - Types of Clients.......................................................................................................................................... 9
Description ............................................................................................................................................................ 9
Item 8 - Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss ............................................................... 9
Methods of Analysis ............................................................................................................................................. 9
Investment Strategies ......................................................................................................................................... 10
Risk of Loss ........................................................................................................................................................ 10
Item 9 - Disciplinary Information ......................................................................................................................... 12
Legal and Disciplinary ....................................................................................................................................... 12
Item 10 - Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations ........................................................................... 12
Sentinel Pension Advisors, Inc. ......................................................................................................................... 14
Focus Financial Partners .................................................................................................................................... 14
Item 11 - Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and Personal Trading .................... 15
Code of Ethics ..................................................................................................................................................... 15
Item 12 - Brokerage Practices................................................................................................................................ 15
Selecting Brokerage Firms ................................................................................................................................. 15
Recommended Custodian Broker-Dealer ......................................................................................................... 15
Aggregation and Allocation ............................................................................................................................... 16
Cross Trades........................................................................................................................................................ 16
Directed Brokerage ............................................................................................................................................. 16
Trade Errors ........................................................................................................................................................ 16
Item 13 - Review of Accounts ............................................................................................................................... 16
Periodic Reviews ................................................................................................................................................ 16
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Review Triggers ................................................................................................................................................. 17
Regular Reports .................................................................................................................................................. 17
Item 14 - Client Referrals and Other Compensation ............................................................................................ 17
Incoming Referrals ............................................................................................................................................. 17
Referrals Out ....................................................................................................................................................... 18
Item 15 – Custody .................................................................................................................................................. 18
Custody................................................................................................................................................................ 18
Account Statements ............................................................................................................................................ 18
Performance Reports .......................................................................................................................................... 18
Item 16 - Investment Discretion ............................................................................................................................ 18
Discretionary Authority for Trading ................................................................................................................. 18
Item 17 - Voting Client Securities ......................................................................................................................... 18
Proxy Votes ......................................................................................................................................................... 18
Class Action Filings ........................................................................................................................................... 19
Item 18 - Financial Information............................................................................................................................. 19
Financial Condition ............................................................................................................................................ 19
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Item 4 - Advisory Business
Firm History
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC (“LaFleur & Godfrey”) is an SEC-registered investment adviser formed as a limited liability
company on August 1, 2013, in the State of Delaware, as successor to the business of LaFleur & Godfrey, Inc.
(“LaFleur & Godfrey”), which registered with the SEC in 2001. On September 1, 2020, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC,
acquired the advisory business of Daniel McAdams. On May 1, 2021, the investment advisory business of Investment
Counsel, Inc. joined LaFleur & Godfrey. Investment Counsel, Inc. operates as a DBA of LaFleur & Godfrey.
Focus Financial Partners
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is part of the Focus Financial Partners, LLC (“Focus LLC”) partnership. Specifically, LaFleur
& Godfrey LLC is a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Focus LLC. Focus Financial Partners Inc. is the sole
managing member of Focus LLC. Ultimate governance of Focus LLC is conducted through the board of directors at
Ferdinand FFP Ultimate Holdings, LP.
Focus LLC is majority-owned, indirectly and collectively, by investment vehicles affiliated with Clayton, Dubilier &
Rice, LLC (“CD&R”). Investment vehicles affiliated with Stone Point Capital LLC (“Stone Point”) are indirect
owners of Focus LLC. Because LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Focus LLC,
CD&R and Stone Point investment vehicles are indirect owners of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC.
Focus LLC also owns other registered investment advisers, broker-dealers, pension consultants, insurance firms,
business managers and other firms (the “Focus Partners”), most of which provide wealth management, benefit
consulting and investment consulting services to individuals, families, employers, and institutions. Some Focus
Partners also manage or advise limited partnerships, private funds, or investment companies as disclosed on their
respective Form ADVs.
Firm Management
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is managed by Daniel Van Timmeren, John Dice and John Koczara (“LaFleur & Godfrey
LLC Principals”), pursuant to a management agreement between Charlevoix Management LG LLC and LaFleur &
Godfrey LLC. The LaFleur & Godfrey LLC Principals serve as officers of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC and are
responsible for the management, supervision and oversight of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC including Investment Counsel
a division of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC.
Our Services
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC provides personalized, comprehensive and confidential wealth management to clients who
are primarily individuals, including high net worth individuals, and their trusts and estates. We also advise pension
and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations and small businesses. We are a fee-based firm who invests client
assets in a manner designed to assist our clients in meeting their goals and needs as communicated in meetings with
us. We typically invest in individual stocks and bonds in accordance with investment principals which favor active
investing, company ownership and focused portfolios. In addition, we may utilize exchange trades funds (“ETFs”),
mutual funds, and private funds in constructing portfolios. The terms of our relationship with clients are explained in
the investment management agreements clients sign with us.
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC also offers fiduciary and non-discretionary advisory services (“3(21) Fiduciary Services”) to
certain participant-directed employee retirement benefit plans and acts as a 3(21) fiduciary as defined in the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”). As such, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC will provide investment
recommendations to the plan sponsor regarding the creation and maintenance of individual fund choices within the
core line-up, and overall asset allocation and investment design for the plan. From time to time, plan sponsors who
engage LaFleur & Godfrey LLC for services to participant-directed retirement plans will enter into an investment
advisory and management agreement among the plan sponsor, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC, and Sentinel Pension
Advisors, Inc. (“Sentinel”), a LaFleur & Godfrey LLC affiliate. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC, like Sentinel, is an indirect
wholly-owned subsidiary of Focus LLC and is therefore under common control with Sentinel. In these instances,
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Sentinel will assist the Client in formulating an investment policy statement for the plan and coordinate with the plan
sponsor to establish a fiduciary governance structure for the plan. Further information on this conflict of interest is
available in Item 10 of this Brochure.
We are a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) with respect
to investment management services and investment advice provided to ERISA plan clients, including ERISA plan
participants. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is also a fiduciary under section 4975 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended (the “IRC”) with respect to investment management services and investment advice provided to individual
retirement accounts (“IRAs”), ERISA plans, and ERISA plan participants. As such, we are subject to specific duties
and obligations under ERISA and the IRC, as applicable, that include, among other things, prohibited transaction rules
which are intended to prohibit fiduciaries from acting on conflicts of interest. When a fiduciary gives advic e, the
fiduciary must either avoid certain conflicts of interest or rely upon an applicable prohibited transaction exemption (a
“PTE”).
As a fiduciary, we have duties of care and of loyalty to you and are subject to obligations imposed on us by federal
and state securities laws. As a result, you have certain rights that you cannot waive or limit by contract. Nothing in
our agreement with you should be interpreted as a limitation of our obligations under the federal and state securities
laws or as a waiver of any unwaivable rights you possess.
Additional Services
Schwab Institutional Intelligent Portfolios®
For the appropriate client, Institutional Intelligent Portfolios® is an automated investment management platform that has
been developed by Schwab and only available to clients who custody their assets at Schwab. LaFleur & Godfrey customizes,
monitors, and maintains a select number of portfolios comprised of ETFs and/or Mutual Funds and made available for use
on the platform. The platform further provides a fully digital onboarding experience with automated trading and
rebalancing. In accordance with our standard Investment Management Agreement, LaFleur & Godfrey will calculate
quarterly fees and instruct Schwab to deduct any agreed upon fees directly from the portfolio held at Schwab. In addition,
although Schwab does not assess brokerage commissions or any other account service fees, Schwab does receive other
revenues which includes the spread on the required 4% cash allocation, revenue sharing or investment management fees
from the ETFs or Mutual funds as described in the respective prospectus, and order flow rebates.
LaFleur & Godfrey Model Portfolios
For the appropriate client, LaFleur & Godfrey has developed ETF Portfolios to correlate to specific client risk and return
characteristics. These models are intended to benefit appropriate client accounts and leveraging the scale offered through
modeling. Client portfolios would be subject to any fees or charges assessed by the underlying ETF as well as our fees
disclosed in our Investment Management Agreement.
Financial Planning
Financial planning services are an additional complement to our investment advisory services. The financial plan may
address any or all of the following areas;
Personal – family records, budgeting, personal liability, financial goals
Education – Education IRAs, 529 Plans, dependent educational needs
Tax & Cash Flow – income tax, spending analysis, tax planning past, present, future
Death & Disability – cash needs at death, income needs for surviving dependents, estate planning, disability income
analysis
Retirement – investment plan and strategies
Investments – portfolio analysis and possible alternatives
Divorce Planning – financial issues and decisions couples may face during the divorce process
Implementation of any financial plans are entirely at the client’s discretion. Clients should include their attorney(s),
accountant(s), and/or insurance agent(s) when making decisions regarding our recommendations for their personal financial
plan.
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Our recommendations will never be based upon any specific product nor service offered by any third party (i.e., broker,
insurance company).
Treasury & Credit Solutions
We offer clients the option of obtaining certain financial solutions from unaffiliated third-party financial institutions through
UPTIQ Treasury & Credit Solutions, LLC (together with UPTIQ, Inc. and its affiliates, “UPTIQ”) and Flourish Financial
LLC (“Flourish”). Please see Items 5 and 10 for a fuller discussion of these services and other important information.
Insurance Solutions
We also help our clients obtain certain insurance solutions by introducing clients to our affiliate, Focus Risk Solutions, LLC
(“FRS”), a wholly owned subsidiary of our parent company, Focus Financial Partners, LLC. Please see Items 5 and 10 for
a fuller discussion of this service and other important information.
IRA Rollovers
Effective December 20, 2021 (or such later date as the US Department of Labor (“DOL”) Field Assistance Bulletin 2018-
02 ceases to be in effect), for purposes of complying with the DOL’s Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02 (“PTE
2020-02”) where applicable, we are providing the following acknowledgment to our clients. When we provide investment
advice to clients regarding retirement plan account or individual retirement accounts, we are fiduciaries within the meaning
of Title I of the Employee Retirements 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 client interests, so we operate under a special rule that requires us to
act in the client’s best interest and not put our interests ahead of the client’s. 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 the client 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 the client’s best interest;
• Charge no more than is reasonable for our services; and
• Disclose basic information about any conflicts of interest.
Discretionary Client Assets
We invest client assets on a discretionary basis pursuant to a limited power of attorney clients give us in their client
agreements. As of December 31, 2024, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC managed $913 million in client assets on a
discretionary basis.
Item 5 – Fees and Compensation
Description
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC bases its fees on a percentage of assets under management. Our standard annual Investment
Management Agreement fee for new clients is calculated as follows:
• 1.00% on the first $1,000,000;
• 0.85% on the next $1,000,000;
• 0.75% on the next $3,000,000;
• 0.50% on the assets above $5,000,000
Fees are negotiable under certain circumstances, such as client size, required service levels, charitable organizations,
and special projects. Legacy clients of Daniel McAdams generally are charged the same fee schedule they were being
charged before becoming clients of our firm. Legacy clients of Investment Counsel, Inc. generally are charged the
same fee schedule they were charged before becoming clients of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. In addition, many
investment management client relationships predated the implementation of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s current
standard annual Advisory Fee Schedule. For this reason, clients’ fees in many cases are higher or lower than those
listed in our current fee schedule.
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Fee Billing
Except for the legacy clients of Investment Counsel, Inc. whose fees are calculated using the end of the quarter market
value, investment management fees are calculated on an average daily balance, and billed quarterly in arrears, meaning
that we invoice clients after the three-month billing period has ended. Unless specifically negotiated, the market value
on which the fee is calculated would include cash and cash equivalents, be reduced by the margin balance or other
borrowing, and does not include accrued but unpaid interest. Payment in full is expected upon invoice presentation.
Advisory fees may be directly debited from the custodian account with the client’s written consent. For related
accounts (other than ERISA accounts) fees may be deducted from a designated client account to facilitate billing. The
client must consent in advance to direct debiting of their investment account.
3(21) Fiduciary Services
From time to time, a plan sponsor will enter into an agreement with both LaFleur & Godfrey LLC and Sentinel Pension
Advisors, Inc. (“Sentinel”). In consideration for the services rendered under the agreement, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC
and Sentinel will share equally (50% each) in the fee charged to the client for investment related services in accordance
with the following schedule:
Market Value of Plan Assets
Fee
First $2,500,000
Next $2,500,000
Next $10,000,000
Next $10,000,000
Over $25,000,000
Minimum Annual Fee
0.50%
0.40%
0.30%
0.25%
0.20%
$6,000
The fee will be invoiced quarterly, in arrears, based on the market value of the plan’s assets, on the last business day
of the previous quarter.
Other Fees
In addition to our fees, clients are responsible for the fees and expenses associated with the investment of their assets.
These fees and expenses may include brokerage commissions and mark ups and mark downs, transaction fees,
custodial fees, deferred sales charges, wire transfer and electronic fund fees, and other fees and taxes related to
brokerage accounts and securities transactions. In addition, if your account holds investment vehicles such as mutual
funds, ETFs and/or private investment funds, you will be subject to the internal management fees, expenses, and any
performance fees charged by these vehicles. These fees and expenses will reduce the performance of your account.
We offer clients the option of obtaining certain financial solutions from unaffiliated third-party financial institutions through
UPTIQ Treasury & Credit Solutions, LLC (together with UPTIQ, Inc. and its affiliates, “UPTIQ”) and Flourish Financial
LLC (“Flourish”). Focus Financial Partners, LLC (“Focus”) is a minority investor in UPTIQ, Inc. UPTIQ is compensated
by sharing in the revenue earned by such third-party financial institutions for serving our clients. The revenue paid to
UPTIQ also benefits UPTIQ, Inc.’s investors, including Focus, our parent company. When legally permissible, UPTIQ also
shares a portion of this earned revenue with our affiliate, Focus Solutions Holdings, LLC (“FSH”). For securities-backed
lines of credit (“SBLOCs”) made to our clients, UPTIQ will share with FSH up to 75% of all revenue it receives from such
third-party financial institutions. For other loans (except residential mortgage loans) made to our clients, UPTIQ will share
with FSH up to 25% of all revenue it receives from such third-party financial institutions. For cash management products
and services provided to our clients, UPTIQ will share with FSH up to 33% of all revenue it receives from the third-party
financial institutions and other intermediaries that provide administrative and settlement services in connection with this
program. As noted above, Flourish facilitates cash management solutions for our clients. When legally permissible,
Flourish pays FSH a revenue share of up to 0.10% of the total amount of cash held in Flourish cash accounts by our clients.
Although the amount of these revenue-sharing payments to FSH is not charged directly in the calculation of the interest rate
paid by clients on credit solutions facilitated by UPTIQ or the yield earned by clients on cash management solutions
facilitated by UPTIQ or Flourish, the compensation earned by UPTIQ and Flourish is an expense of the third-party financial
institutions that informs the interest rate paid by clients on credit solutions and the yield earned by clients on cash
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management solutions. FSH distributes this revenue to us when we are licensed to receive such revenue (or when no such
license is required) and the distribution is not otherwise legally prohibited. Further information on this conflict of interest
is available in Item 10 of this Brochure.
We help our clients obtain certain insurance solutions by introducing clients to our affiliate, Focus Risk Solutions, LLC
(“FRS”), a wholly owned subsidiary of our parent company, Focus Financial Partners, LLC. FRS assists our clients with
regulated insurance sales activity by advising our clients on insurance matters and placing insurance products for them
and/or referring our clients to certain third-party insurance brokers (the “Brokers”), with whom FRS has agreements, which
either separately or together with FRS place insurance products for them. If FRS places an insurance product or refers one
of our clients to a Broker and there is a subsequent purchase of insurance through the Broker, then FRS will receive a portion
of the upfront and/or ongoing commissions associated with the sale by the insurance carrier with which the policy was
placed. The amount of revenue earned by FRS for the sale of these insurance products will vary over time in response to
market conditions and will also differ based on the type of insurance product sold and which Broker placed the policy. The
amount of insurance commission revenue earned by FRS is considered for purposes of determining the amount of additional
compensation that certain of our financial professionals are entitled to receive. Additionally, in exchange for allowing
certain of the Brokers to participate in the FRS platform and, thereby, to offer their services to our clients and certain of our
affiliates’ clients, FRS receives periodic fees (the “Platform Fees”) from such Brokers. The Platform Fees are expected to
change over time. Such Platform Fees are revenue for FRS and, ultimately, for our common parent company, Focus, but
we do not share in such revenue. FRS also indirectly benefits from our clients’ use of the services insofar as such use
incentivizes the Brokers to maintain their relationship with FRS and to continue paying Platform Fees to FRS, which could
also support increases in the overall amount of the Platform Fee rates in the future. Further information on this conflict of
interest is available in Item 10 of this Brochure.
Termination of Agreement
The client or the investment manager may terminate an Agreement by written notice to the other party as set forth in
the Investment Management Agreement. At termination, fees will be billed on a pro rata basis for the portion of the
quarter completed. The standard fee calculation applies, adjusted for the number of days during the billing quarter
prior to termination.
Item 6 - Performance-Based Fees and Side by Side Management
Sharing of Capital Gains
Our standard advisory fees are not based on a share of the capital gains or capital appreciation of managed securities.
Item 7 - Types of Clients
Description
Our clients are primarily individuals, including high net worth individuals, and their trusts and estates. We also advise
pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable organizations, and small businesses. We do not have a formal account
minimum, but we reserve the discretion to decline to accept client engagements that are not a fit with our Firm.
Item 8 - Methods of Analysis, Investment Strategies and Risk of Loss
Methods of Analysis
Security analysis is primarily done using fundamental analysis.
Fundamental analysis looks at all aspects of a business, including management, products and/or services, and
financials in deciding whether to invest in the security.
The main sources of information include financial newspapers and magazines, inspections of corporate activities,
research materials prepared by others, corporate rating services, annual reports, prospectuses, filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, company press releases, and the World Wide Web.
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Investment Strategies
Our investment principals favor active investing, company ownership and focused portfolios. In managing our
strategies and client accounts, we mostly utilize individual stocks and bonds, with ETFs and mutual funds added in
certain situations.
The investment strategy we implement for a specific client is based upon the client’s objectives as communicated to
us during consultations. The client may change these objectives at any time. We may utilize any one or multiple
investment strategies we manage for any one client or client relationship.
Our investment strategies include the following:
The Focused Core 30 Equity Strategy is a firm-managed portfolio that leverages the collective strength of the firm in
constructing, monitoring, and managing the approximately 30 stocks that comprise this growth strategy. Both Macro
considerations and Company specific fundamentals frame each investment decision such as: Global GDP forecasts,
US GDP forecasts, Fed monetary policy, Fiscal policy, Inflation outlook, Company balance sheet strength, Low debt
levels, Strong free cash flow, etc.
The Focused Dividend 10 Equity Strategy is a firm-managed individual stock portfolio. However, the emphasis is on
dividend paying stocks that provide current income to clients. Primary considerations in making security selections
include: balance sheet quality, cash flow generation, earnings sustainability, yield and tax sensitivity.
The Focused Emerging Trends Equity Strategy is a firm-managed, individual stock aggressive growth strategy focused
on companies with strong and/or accelerating revenue growth. These innovators & disrupters oftentimes prioritize
growth investments over profits while gaining market share in their rapidly growing and expanding addressable
markets. Management execution is critical. A long-term perspective is warranted as the strategy has above-average
volatility.
The Focused Blue Chip Equity Strategy is a firm-managed, individual stock strategy emphasizing long-term growth
& income. The strategy is expected to invest in 30-35 well-established companies with significant brand name
recognition, proven management teams, strong balance sheets and historical above average dividend payouts. In
addition, intentional widespread sector representation increases diversification and lowers tracking error versus the
benchmark index.
Due to differences in the Firm’s investment strategies and/or the individualized nature of certain advice, LaFleur &
Godfrey LLC could be selling securities on behalf of some clients while buying the same or other securities on behalf
of other clients.
Risk of Loss
Investing in securities involves risk of loss that clients should be prepared to bear. Our investment approach constantly
keeps the risk of loss in mind. Investors face the following investment risks based on the type of investments we use
in managing client accounts:
•
•
Interest-rate Risk: Fluctuations in interest rates may cause investment prices to fluctuate. For example, when
interest rates rise, yields on existing bonds become less attractive, causing their market values to decline.
• Market Risk: The price of a security, bond, or mutual fund may drop in reaction to tangible and intangible
events and conditions. This type of risk is caused by external factors independent of a security’s particular
underlying circumstances. For example, political, economic and social conditions may trigger market events.
Inflation Risk: When any type of inflation is present, a dollar today will not buy as much as a dollar next year,
because purchasing power is eroding at the rate of inflation.
• Currency Risk: Overseas investments are subject to fluctuations in the value of the dollar against the currency
of the investment’s originating country. This is also referred to as exchange rate risk.
• Reinvestment Risk: This is the risk that future proceeds from investments may have to be reinvested at a
potentially lower rate of return (i.e. interest rate). This primarily relates to fixed income securities.
• Business Risk: These risks are associated with a particular industry or a particular company within an industry.
For example, oil-drilling companies depend on finding oil and then refining it, a lengthy process, before they
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can generate a profit. They carry a higher risk of profitability than an electric company, which generates its
income from a steady stream of customers who buy electricity no matter what the economic environment is
like.
• Liquidity Risk: Liquidity is the ability to readily convert an investment into cash. Generally, assets are more
liquid if many traders are interested in a standardized product. For example, Treasury Bills are highly liquid,
while real estate properties are not.
• Financial Risk: Excessive borrowing to finance a business’ operations increases the risk of profitability,
because the company must meet the terms of its obligations in good times and bad. During periods of financial
stress, the inability to meet loan obligations may result in bankruptcy and/or a declining market value.
• Cybersecurity Risk: The computer systems, networks and devices used by LaFleur & Godfrey LLC and
service providers to us and our clients to carry out routine business operations employ a variety of protections
designed to prevent damage or interruption from computer viruses, network failures, computer and
telecommunication failures, infiltration by unauthorized persons and security breaches. Despite the various
protections utilized, systems, networks, or devices potentially can be breached. A client could be negatively
impacted as a result of a cybersecurity breach. Cybersecurity breaches can include unauthorized access to
systems, networks, or devices; infection from computer viruses or other malicious software code; and attacks
that shut down, disable, slow, or otherwise disrupt operations, business processes, or website access or
functionality. Cybersecurity breaches may cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially
resulting in financial losses to a client; impediments to trading; the inability by us and other service providers
to transact business; violations of applicable privacy and other laws; regulatory fines, penalties, reputational
damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, or additional compliance costs; as well as the inadvertent
release of confidential information. Similar adverse consequences could result from cybersecurity breaches
affecting issuers of securities in which a client invests; governmental and other regulatory authorities;
exchange and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers, and other financial institutions; and
other parties. In addition, substantial costs may be incurred by these entities in order to prevent any
cybersecurity breaches in the future.
• Options Transactions: an option is a financial instrument that establishes a contract between two parties
concerning the buying or selling of an asset at a reference price during a specified time frame. During this
time frame, the buyer of the option gains the right, but not the obligation, to engage in some specific transaction
on the asset, while the seller incurs the obligation to fulfill the transaction if requested by the buyer. The price
of an option derives from the value of an underlying asset (commonly a stock, a bond, a currency or a futures
contract) plus a premium based on the time remaining until the expiration of the option. Other types of options
exist, and options can, in principle, be created for any type of valuable asset. In return for granting the option,
called writing the option, the originator of the option collects a payment, the premium, from the buyer. The
writer of an option must make good on delivering (or receiving) the underlying asset or its cash equivalent, if
the option is exercised. The use of options as an investment strategy can involve a significant risk which may
result in significant loss based upon market conditions.
• Alternative Investments/Private Funds Risk: Investing in alternative investments is speculative, not suitable
for all clients, and intended for experienced and sophisticated investors who are willing to bear the high
economic risks of the investment, which can include:
o
o
loss of all or a substantial portion of the investment due to leveraging, short-selling or other speculative
investment practices;
lack of liquidity in that there may be no secondary market for the investment and none expected to
develop;
restrictions on transferring interests in the investment;
o volatility of returns;
o
o potential lack of diversification and resulting higher risk due to concentration of trading authority
when a single adviser is utilized;
o absence of information regarding valuations and pricing;
o delays in tax reporting;
o
o
less regulation and higher fees than mutual funds; and
risks associated with the operations, personnel, and processes of the manager of the funds investing in
alternative investments.
11
Clients are strongly encouraged to review the private offering memorandum which offers a more complete
discussion of the risks of investing in the fund.
Item 9 - Disciplinary Information
Legal and Disciplinary
Registered Investment Advisers are required to disclose all material facts regarding a legal or disciplinary event that
would be material to a prospective or existing client’s evaluation of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC or the integrity of LaFleur
& Godfrey LLC’s management. We have no information to disclose in response to this item.
Item 10 - Other Financial Industry Activities and Affiliations
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has no other financial industry activities.
Credit and Cash Management Solutions
We offer clients the option of obtaining certain financial solutions from unaffiliated third-party financial institutions through
UPTIQ Treasury & Credit Solutions, LLC (together with UPTIQ, Inc. and its affiliates, “UPTIQ”) and Flourish Financial
LLC. These third-party financial institutions are banks and non-banks that offer credit and cash management solutions to
our clients, as well as certain other unaffiliated third parties that provide administrative and settlement services to facilitate
UPTIQ’s cash management solutions. UPTIQ acts as an intermediary to facilitate our clients’ access to these credit and
cash management solutions. Flourish acts as an intermediary to facilitate our clients’ access to cash management solutions.
We are a wholly owned subsidiary of Focus Financial Partners, LLC (“Focus”). Focus is a minority investor in UPTIQ,
Inc. UPTIQ is compensated by sharing in the revenue earned by such third-party financial institutions for serving our
clients. The revenue paid to UPTIQ also benefits UPTIQ, Inc.’s investors, including Focus. When legally permissible,
UPTIQ also shares a portion of this earned revenue with our affiliate, Focus Solutions Holdings, LLC (“FSH”). For
securities-backed lines of credit (“SBLOCs”) made to our clients, UPTIQ will share with FSH up to 75% of all revenue it
receives from such third-party financial institutions. For other loans (except residential mortgage loans) made to our clients,
UPTIQ will share with FSH up to 25% of all revenue it receives from such third-party financial institutions. For cash
management products and services provided to our clients, UPTIQ will share with FSH up to 33% of all revenue it receives
from the third-party financial institutions and other intermediaries that provide administrative and settlement services in
connection with this program. As noted above, Flourish facilitates cash management solutions for our clients. When legally
permissible, Flourish pays FSH a revenue share of up to 0.10% of the total amount of cash held in Flourish cash accounts
by our clients. Although the amount of these revenue-sharing payments to FSH is not charged directly in the calculation of
the interest rate paid by clients on credit solutions facilitated by UPTIQ or the yield earned by clients on cash management
solutions facilitated by UPTIQ or Flourish, the compensation earned by UPTIQ and Flourish is an expense of the third-
party financial institutions that informs the interest rate paid by clients on credit solutions and the yield earned by clients on
cash management solutions. FSH distributes this revenue to us when we are licensed to receive such revenue (or when no
such license is required) and the distribution is not otherwise legally prohibited. This revenue is also revenue for FSH’s
and our common parent company, Focus. Additionally, the volume generated by our clients’ transactions allows Focus to
negotiate better terms with UPTIQ and Flourish, which benefits Focus and us. Accordingly, we have a conflict of interest
when recommending UPTIQ’s and Flourish’s services to clients because of the compensation [to us and] to our affiliates,
FSH and Focus, and the transaction volume to UPTIQ and Flourish. We mitigate this conflict by: (1) fully and fairly
disclosing the material facts concerning the above arrangements to our clients, including in this Brochure; and (2) offering
UPTIQ’s and Flourish’s solutions to clients on a strictly nondiscretionary and fully disclosed basis, and not as part of any
discretionary investment services. Additionally, we note that clients who use UPTIQ’s and Flourish’s services will receive
product-specific disclosures from the third-party financial institutions and other unaffiliated third-party intermediaries that
provide services to our clients.
We have an additional conflict of interest when we recommend credit solutions to our clients because our interest in
continuing to receive investment advisory fees from client accounts gives us a financial incentive to recommend that clients
borrow money rather than liquidate some or all of the assets we manage.
Credit Solutions
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Clients retain the right to pledge assets in accounts generally, subject to any restrictions imposed by clients’ custodians.
While credit solution programs that we offer facilitate secured loans through third-party financial institutions, clients are
free instead to work directly with institutions outside such programs. Because of the limited number of participating third-
party financial institutions, clients may be limited in their ability to obtain as favorable loan terms as if the client were to
work directly with other banks to negotiate loan terms or obtain other financial arrangements.
Clients should also understand that pledging assets in an account to secure a loan involves additional risk and restrictions.
A third-party financial institution has the authority to liquidate all or part of the pledged securities at any time, without prior
notice to clients and without their consent, to maintain required collateral levels. The third-party financial institution also
has the right to call client loans and require repayment within a short period of time; if the client cannot repay the loan
within the specified time period, the third-party financial institution will have the right to force the sale of pledged assets to
repay those loans. Selling assets to maintain collateral levels or calling loans may result in asset sales and realized losses
in a declining market, leading to the permanent loss of capital. These sales also may have adverse tax consequences. Interest
payments and any other loan-related fees are borne by clients and are in addition to the advisory fees that clients pay us for
managing assets, including assets that are pledged as collateral. The returns on pledged assets may be less than the account
fees and interest paid by the account. Clients should consider carefully and skeptically any recommendation to pursue a
more aggressive investment strategy in order to support the cost of borrowing, particularly the risks and costs of any such
strategy. More generally, before borrowing funds, a client should carefully review the loan agreement, loan application,
and other forms and determine that the loan is consistent with the client’s long-term financial goals and presents risks
consistent with the client’s financial circumstances and risk tolerance.
We use UPTIQ to facilitate credit solutions for our clients.
Cash Management Solutions
For cash management programs, certain third-party intermediaries provide administrative and settlement services to our
clients. Engaging the third-party financial institutions and other intermediaries to provide cash management solutions does
not alter the manner in which we treat cash for billing purposes. Clients should understand that in rare circumstances,
depending on interest rates and other economic and market factors, the yields on cash management solutions could be lower
than the aggregate fees and expenses charged by the third-party financial institutions, the intermediaries referenced above,
and us. Consequently, in these rare circumstances, a client could experience a negative overall investment return with
respect to those cash investments. Nonetheless, it might still be reasonable for a client to participate in a cash management
program if the client prefers to hold cash at the third-party financial institutions rather than at other financial institutions
(e.g., to take advantage of FDIC insurance).
We use UPTIQ and Flourish to facilitate cash management solutions for our clients.
Focus Risk Solutions
We help our clients obtain certain insurance solutions by introducing clients to our affiliate, Focus Risk Solutions, LLC
(“FRS”), a wholly owned subsidiary of our parent company, Focus Financial Partners, LLC (“Focus”).
FRS assists our clients with regulated insurance sales activity by advising our clients on insurance matters and placing
insurance products for them and/or referring our clients to certain third-party insurance brokers (the “Brokers”), with whom
FRS has agreements, which either separately or together with FRS place insurance products for them. If FRS places an
insurance product or refers one of our clients to a Broker and there is a subsequent purchase of insurance through the Broker,
then FRS will receive a portion of the upfront and/or ongoing commissions associated with the sale by the insurance carrier
with which the policy was placed. The amount of revenue earned by FRS for the sale of these insurance products will vary
over time in response to market conditions and will also differ based on the type of insurance product sold and which Broker
placed the policy. The amount of insurance commission revenue earned by FRS is considered for purposes of determining
the amount of additional compensation that certain of our financial professionals are entitled to receive. This revenue is
also revenue for our and FRS’s common parent company, Focus.
Additionally, in exchange for allowing certain of the Brokers to participate in the FRS platform and, thereby, to offer their
services to our clients and certain of our affiliates’ clients, FRS receives periodic fees (the “Platform Fees”) from such
Brokers. The Platform Fees are expected to change over time. Such Platform Fees are revenue for FRS and, ultimately, for
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our common parent company, Focus, but we do not share in such revenue. FRS also indirectly benefits from our clients’
use of the services insofar as such use incentivizes the Brokers to maintain their relationship with FRS and to continue
paying Platform Fees to FRS, which could also support increases in the overall amount of the Platform Fee rates in the
future.
Accordingly, we have a conflict of interest when recommending FRS’s services to clients because of the compensation to
certain of our financial professionals and to our affiliates, FRS and Focus. We address this conflict by: (1) fully and fairly
disclosing the material facts concerning the above arrangements to our clients, including in this Brochure; (2) offering FRS
solutions to clients on a strictly nondiscretionary and fully disclosed basis, and not as part of any discretionary investment
services; and (3) not sharing in any portion of the Platform Fees. Additionally, we note that clients who use FRS’s services
will receive product-specific disclosure from the Brokers and insurance carriers and other unaffiliated third-party
intermediaries that provide services to our clients.
The insurance premium is ultimately dictated by the insurance carrier, although in some circumstances the Brokers or FRS
may have the ability to influence an insurance carrier to lower the premium of the policy. The final rate may be higher or
lower than the prevailing market rate, and may be higher than if the policy was purchased directly through the Broker
without the assistance of FRS. We can offer no assurances that the rates offered to you by the insurance carrier are the
lowest possible rates available in the marketplace.
Sentinel Pension Advisors, Inc.
From time to time, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC clients engage Sentinel Pension Advisors, Inc (“Sentinel”) for retirement plan
services. Clients who choose to engage Sentinel sign a tri-party agreement with Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC.
Compensation and service arrangements with LaFleur & Godfrey LLC and Sentinel are fully disclosed in that tri-party
agreement. Sentinel, like LaFleur & Godfrey LLC, is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Focus Financial Partners,
LLC (“Focus LLC”) and is therefore under common control with LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. The allocation of a plan’s assets
to Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC, rather than to unaffiliated investment managers, increases the compensation to
Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC, and the revenue to Focus LLC. As a consequence, Focus LLC benefits financially
when a plan sponsor engages Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC, which creates a conflict of interest with the client.
Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC believe this conflict is mitigated because of the following factors: (1) the retention of
Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is based on the plan sponsor’s judgment that such retention is in the best interest of
the plan; (2) Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC have each met the due diligence standards that the plan sponsor applies
to investment managers; (3) the plan sponsor is willing and able to terminate the services of Sentinel and/or LaFleur &
Godfrey LLC, in part or in whole, if the services of Sentinel or LaFleur & Godfrey LLC become unsatisfactory in the
judgment of, and at the sole discretion of, the plan sponsor; and (4) Sentinel and LaFleur & Godfrey LLC have fully and
fairly disclosed the material facts regarding this relationship to the plan sponsor, and the plan sponsor gives its informed
consent to this arrangement. The plan sponsor independently makes the decision to enter into the tri-party agreement and
neither Sentinel nor LaFleur & Godfrey LLC provided investment advice that formed a basis for, or acted as a fiduciary
with respect to, the plan sponsor’s decision to select or retain Sentinel or LaFleur & Godfrey LLC to provide the services
described in the tri-party agreement.
Focus Financial Partners
As noted above in response to Item 4, certain investment vehicles affiliated with CD&R collectively are indirect majority
owners of Focus LLC, and certain investment vehicles affiliated with Stone Point are indirect owners of Focus LLC.
Because LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Focus LLC, CD&R and Stone Point
investment vehicles are indirect owners of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC.
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not believe the Focus Partnership presents a conflict of interest with our clients. Except
as disclosed above, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has no business relationship with other Focus Partners that is material to
its advisory business or to its clients.
Additional information about Focus can be found at www.focusfinancialpartners.com.
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Item 11 - Code of Ethics, Participation or Interest in Client Transactions and
Personal Trading
Code of Ethics
The employees of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC have committed to a Code of Ethics that is available for review by clients
and prospective clients upon request.
Subject to the firm’s Code of Ethics, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC and its employees may buy or sell securities that are
also held by clients. This is a potential conflict of interest. Our Code of Ethics is designed to mitigate the potential
conflict of interest by implementing preclearance requirements for certain securities transactions by Firm personnel
and requiring them to report their personal securities holdings and transactions for compliance review.
Item 12 - Brokerage Practices
Selecting Brokerage Firms
For client accounts that custody with a bank or trust company, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has full discretion as to which
broker-dealer to execute brokerage transactions. For these accounts, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC executes equity
securities transactions at RBC and William Blair, broker-dealers who provide research services to our firm, for 5 cents
per share. Clients should understand that their commission dollars are used toward research that will likely benefit
their portfolio, but also benefits other client portfolios. In order to obtain investment research and analysis furnished
by these “research” brokerage firms, clients may pay a brokerage commission which is higher than commissions
generally available in recognition of the value of services provided to LaFleur & Godfrey LLC by the brokerage firm.
Services obtained for one client may also benefit other clients. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC considers various factors in
the selection of a broker, including research capabilities, research recommendations, ability to execute trades, depth
of services provided, processing capabilities, financial stability and responsibility, reputation, commission rate,
responsiveness to LaFleur & Godfrey LLC and the value of brokerage and research services provided by such brokers.
Research Services provided by brokers may include: proprietary research including written company, industry and
economic reports. It also includes conference calls with analysts and corporate managements, and invitations to single
and multi-day investment conferences, which feature presentations by managements of companies in which LaFleur
& Godfrey LLC has investments on behalf of its clients, or prospective interest in investment.
Research and execution-related services provided by brokers may be proprietary products and services of the brokers.
When LaFleur & Godfrey LLC uses client brokerage commissions to obtain research and other permitted products
and services, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC receives a benefit in that LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not therefore have to
produce or pay for the research, products or services. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC therefore has an incentive to select or
recommend a broker-dealer based on LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s interest in receiving the research, rather than on
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s clients’ interest in receiving most favorable execution. This is a conflict of interest. We
believe that the execution of securities transactions through RBC and William Blair is appropriate because it provides
lawful and appropriate assistance in our investment decision making responsibilities to client accounts.
Recommended Custodian Broker-Dealer
For clients who have not custodied their assets at a bank, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC recommends a custodian broker -
dealer based on LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s experience with the quality of each of the recommended firms’ services
and fees. We routinely recommend that clients custody their assets with Charles Schwab & Co. (“Schwab”), an
independent custodian and broker-dealer, and direct us to execute all securities transactions with Schwab. Clients
should understand that by directing us to use a particular broker or dealer, we will not seek more competitive execution
through other broker-dealers, and best execution may not be achieved. Not all investment advisors require clients to
direct the use of specific brokers.
We participate in the institutional programs the custodian broker-dealers offer to independent investment advisers
such as LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. These institutional programs provide us with access to services which are not
available to retail investors. These services generally are available to independent investment advisors on an
unsolicited basis at no charge to them. These services benefit LaFleur & Godfrey LLC but may not benefit all client
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accounts. Many of the products and services assist LaFleur & Godfrey LLC in managing and administering client
accounts. These include software and other technology that provide access to client account data (such as trade
confirmations and account statements), facilitate trade execution (and allocation of aggregated trade orders for
multiple client accounts), provide research, pricing information and other market data, facilitate payment of LaFleur
& Godfrey LLC's fees from its clients' accounts, and assist with back-office functions, recordkeeping and client
reporting. Many of these services generally may be used to service all or a substantial number of LaFleur & Godfrey
LLC's accounts. Custodian broker-dealers also make available to LaFleur & Godfrey LLC other services intended to
help LaFleur & Godfrey LLC manage and further develop its business enterprise. These services may include
consulting, publications and conferences on practice management, information technology, business succession,
regulatory compliance, and marketing. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not, however, enter into any commitments with
the brokers for transaction levels in exchange for any services or products from brokers. While as a fiduciary, LaFleur
& Godfrey LLC endeavors to act in its clients' best interests, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC's recommendation that clients
maintain their assets in accounts at a custodian broker-dealer could potentially be influenced by the availability of
some of the foregoing products and services and not solely on the nature, cost or quality of custody and brokerage
services provided by the brokers. We seek to mitigate this conflict of interest through disclosure and periodically
reviewing the quality of services provided to client accounts.
Aggregation and Allocation
When it is appropriate, LaFleur & Godfrey LLC may aggregate or “block” client orders to achieve more efficient
execution. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC attempts to group its stock trades in blocks where possible. In such instances,
each client account participating in the aggregate transaction will be charged the average price per unit for the security.
We seek to place, aggregate and allocate trades among our clients in a manner that is fair and equitable under the
circumstances.
Cross Trades
We occasionally execute cross trades of certain fixed income securities for certain client accounts where we recommend
that one client sell a security and another client purchase that same security. Cross trades present a conflict of interest in
that the selling and purchasing clients are taking opposing positions and have opposing interests in the execution price to
be obtained. We seek to mitigate this conflict of interest through this disclosure and by seeking a market execution price.
Directed Brokerage
Certain clients have custodied their accounts at broker-dealer custodians that we have not recommended, and we are
only able to execute transactions through the particular broker-dealer custodian selected by the client. A client that
custodies their account at a broker-dealer custodian who requires LaFleur & Godfrey LLC to execute securities
transactions through that particular broker should be aware that LaFleur & Godfrey LLC will not be able to aggregate
securities transactions to obtain more favorable price or seek to execute securities transactions through other broker-
dealers in order to obtain more favorable prices or execution than the prices or execution offered by the directed
broker. Clients therefore may not be able to obtain best execution for their transactions and may receive less favorable
prices and pay a higher commission rate for executing these transactions. Ultimately, these arrangements may cost
clients more money.
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not have any arrangements to compensate any broker-dealer for client referrals.
Trade Errors
When trading client accounts, errors may periodically occur. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC endeavors to correct errors
promptly and, when we are responsible for the error, in a manner that makes the client whole. We do not retain any
client trade error gains.
Item 13 - Review of Accounts
Periodic Reviews
Account reviews are performed regularly for changes in cash balances resulting from deposits, withdrawals, and bond
maturities and at least quarterly for strategy review and asset allocation rebalancing. Reviews are done by the firm
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principals as well as assistant portfolio managers as supervised by the principals. Account reviews are performed more
frequently when market conditions dictate.
Review Triggers
Other conditions that may trigger a review are changes in the tax laws, new investment information, and changes in a
client's own situation.
Regular Reports
Firm principals, who have responsibility for specific client relationships, perform account reviews. They review each
account for asset allocation versus targets, fixed income strategy and individual stock selections and diversification
and the likelihood that the performance of each security will contribute to the investment objectives of the client.
Clients receive written transaction and valuation reports at least quarterly from their account custodian. LaFleur &
Godfrey LLC also provides clients with various reports, including reports of the holdings and performance of their
accounts, and economic and market outlook commentary. We seek to meet with each client to review their financial
circumstances and their accounts at least annually and to send reports to clients with whom a meeting cannot be
arranged.
Item 14 - Client Referrals and Other Compensation
Incoming Referrals
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has been fortunate to receive many client referrals over the years. The referrals came from
current clients, estate planning attorneys, accountants, personal friends of employees and other similar sources. The
firm does not compensate referring parties for these referrals.
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s parent company is Focus Financial Partners, LLC (“Focus”). From time to time, Focus
holds partnership meetings and other industry and best-practices conferences, which typically include LaFleur &
Godfrey LLC, other Focus firms and external attendees. These meetings are first and foremost intended to provide
training or education to personnel of Focus firms, including LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. However, the meetings do
provide sponsorship opportunities for asset managers, asset custodians, vendors and other third-party service
providers. Sponsorship fees allow these companies to advertise their products and services to Focus firms, including
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. Although the participation of Focus firm personnel in these meetings is not preconditioned
on the achievement of a sales target for any conference sponsor, this practice could nonetheless be deemed a conflict
as the marketing and education activities conducted, and the access granted, at such meetings and conferences could
cause LaFleur & Godfrey LLC to focus on those conference sponsors in the course of its duties. Focus attempts to
mitigate any such conflict by allocating the sponsorship fees only to defraying the cost of the meeting or future
meetings and not as revenue for itself or any affiliate, including LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. Conference sponsorship
fees are not dependent on assets placed with any specific provider or revenue generated by such asset placement.
The following entities have provided conference sponsorship to Focus from January 1, 2024 to February 1, 2025:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Advent Software, Inc. (includes SS&C)
BlackRock, Inc.
Blackstone Administrative Services Partnership L.P.
Capital Integration Systems LLC (CAIS)
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
Confluence Technologies Inc.
Eaton Vance Distributors, Inc. (includes Parametric Portfolio Associates)
Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC and Fidelity Distributors Company LLC (includes Fidelity Institutional
Asset Management and FIAM)
Flourish Financial LLC
Franklin Distributors, LLC (includes O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, L.L.C. (OSAM) and CANVAS)
K&L Gates LLP
Nuveen Securities, LLC
Orion Advisor Technology, LLC
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Pinegrove Capital Partners LLC (includes Brookfield Oaktree Wealth Solutions)
Practifi, Inc.
Salus GRC, LLC
Stone Ridge Asset Management LLC
The Vanguard Group, Inc.
TriState Capital Bank
UPTIQ, Inc.
You can access a more recently updated list of recent conference sponsors on Focus’ website through the following
link:
https://focusfinancialpartners.com/conference-sponsors/
Referrals Out
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not accept referral fees or any form of remuneration from other professionals when a
prospect or client is referred to them. The benefits we receive from Schwab are described in our response to Item 12.
Item 15 – Custody
Custody
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC is deemed to have custody over client assets when the Firm directly debits client advisory fees
from respective client’s custodial account, pursuant to the client’s written authorization in the Investment Management
Agreement. LaFleur & Godfrey, LLC also is deemed to have legal custody over the assets of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC
clients who authorize us to direct their client custodian(s) to direct transfers to third-parties pursuant to standing instructions.
Account Statements
All assets are held at qualified custodians, and the custodians provide account statements directly to clients at their
address of record at least quarterly.
Performance Reports
Clients are urged to compare the account statements received directly from their custodians to the various portfolio
reviews or statements provided by LaFleur & Godfrey LLC. Our reviews or statements may vary from the custodian
statements based on accounting procedures, reporting dates, or valuation methodologies of certain securities.
Item 16 - Investment Discretion
Discretionary Authority for Trading
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has discretionary authority to manage securities accounts on behalf of clients. Under a limited
power of attorney contained in our investment management agreement with clients, we have the authority to
determine, without obtaining specific client consent, the securities to be bought or sold, and the amount of the
securities to be bought or sold. Clients are permitted to impose reasonable written restrictions on the investments in
their accounts, for example, to prohibit certain investments for moral, ethical, or religious reasons or to limit any single
asset to a maximum percent of the total portfolio market value.
Item 17 - Voting Client Securities
Proxy Votes
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has entered into an agreement with Broadridge/ProxyEdge, whereby they automate,
facilitate, and record keep the voting of proxies in the instance where clients have authorized LaFleur & Godfrey LLC
to vote proxies in their Investment Management Agreement with us. Not all custodians are able to integrate with
Broadridge/ProxyEdge, for these custodians and the respective clients LaFleur & Godfrey LLC manually votes and
recordkeeps the proxies. Legacy clients of Investment Counsel, Inc. have not authorized LaFleur & Godfrey LLC to
vote proxies, therefore, proxies will be delivered to those clients for voting. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC has adopted a
proxy voting policy reasonably designed to vote client proxies in the best interest of clients. LaFleur & Godfrey LLC’s
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principals constitute the Proxy Committee and must agree on a voting position with respect to proposals which are
not covered by the firm’s proxy voting guidelines. The guidelines address five general categories: Corporate
Governance; Takeover Defense; Compensation Plans (generally against plans which are dilutive and overly generous)
Capital Structure; Classes of Stock and Recapitalization; and Social Responsibility (the Firm opposes most of these
proposals; however, each is evaluated carefully whether favored or opposed by management.) Generally, we do not
allow clients to instruct us how to vote specific proxies although we will consider such instructions upon request.
In the event of a vote involving a conflict of interest that does not meet the specific voting parameters of LaFleur &
Godfrey LLC's proxy voting guidelines or requires additional company-specific decision-making, LaFleur & Godfrey
LLC may request an independent third-party review.
Clients may call, write, or email us to request a copy of LaFleur & Godfrey LLC's complete proxy voting policy and
those of its proxy voting service provider, voting records of how securities have been voted in their particular account,
or to discuss questions they may have about their proxies. Our contact information is on the cover page of this
brochure.
Class Action Filings
When class action lawsuits are filed and clients are eligible to participate in the class, they may contact LaFleur & Godfrey
to confirm their desire to be included as part of the class. At that point, upon request, we will assist by providing the
appropriate notice, claim forms, and historical transactions and holdings reports that substantiate the participation in the
class, to enable the client to file the claim.
Item 18 - Financial Information
Financial Condition
LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not have any financial impairment that will preclude the Firm from meeting contractual
commitments to clients. A balance sheet is not required to be provided because LaFleur & Godfrey LLC does not
serve as a custodian for client funds or securities nor requires prepayment of fees of more than $1,200 per client, and
six months or more in advance.
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