The default at USWMA
USWMA manages all client accounts on a strictly non-discretionary basis. That is not a marketing line. It is a structural commitment. It means that for every transaction, the client must authorize the trade prior to execution. There is no master discretionary authority on file. There is no quiet rebalancing in the background.
Most modern wealth management is discretionary. The adviser obtains a power of attorney over the account and then transacts at will, reporting after the fact. That model has its place, but it concentrates decision authority in one party and creates a category of risk that is, by definition, not visible to the client until after a trade clears.
Why structure matters
Non-discretionary management forces a different operating tempo. Every position taken or reduced is the result of a documented conversation. The client sees the rationale, the alternatives considered, and the size before capital moves. Over time, this builds an audit trail that mirrors the client's own thinking, not just the adviser's.
It also means the client retains decisional authority over the substance of the portfolio. Markets do not wait, and there is real cost to slower execution in volatile environments. We accept that trade-off because the alternative, the cumulative compounding of small unilateral decisions, tends to drift the portfolio away from what the client would actually choose if asked.
What this is not
Non-discretionary management is not a robo-advisor with extra steps. It is not a refusal to bring conviction to a recommendation. We bring research, conviction, and a point of view. We just do not act on them unilaterally.
It is also not a way to avoid responsibility. The fiduciary duty USWMA owes its clients is undiminished by the structure of the engagement. If anything, the structure clarifies the duty: every recommendation must be one the adviser is willing to make on the record, with the client able to accept or decline before any capital is committed.
