Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which hasn’t played much of a role in the fiduciary debate because the vast majority of its clients aren’t affected, stayed neutral. And some of the big banks that opposed the suit said they wouldn’t stand in the way of filing it, though most didn’t want to pay for it.
Some members said that splitting the legal costs may trigger another dust-up. Those bills, the people said, are estimated to be $1 million to $2 million, depending on whether there is an appeal.
The trade groups hired Eugene Scalia, a former top lawyer at the Labor Department who has a strong record of getting courts to strike down government regulations. He recently successfully argued that MetLife Inc. shouldn’t be subject to heightened Federal Reserve oversight, a case the government is appealing.