William Nelson

William Nelson is the Director of Public Policy and Associate General Counsel at the Investment Adviser Association (IAA), where he leads legislative and regulatory advocacy on behalf of the investment adviser profession. Prior to joining the IAA, Mr. Nelson served as Chief Compliance Officer of Mercer Advisors, one of the largest independent SEC-registered investment advisers in the United States, where he oversaw the firm’s legal and regulatory compliance program. He previously served as Assistant General Counsel and Public Policy Counsel at the CFP Board and held multiple attorney roles with the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Mr. Nelson served as an adjunct professor at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, where he taught securities law, and has also taught at the George Washington University Law School. He currently serves as Chair of the DC Bar’s Corporation, Finance and Securities Law Community. A frequent speaker at industry conferences, Mr. Nelson has published articles in several scholarly law journals, and his work has been cited in legal treatises and state and federal court decisions. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Tulsa, his JD (with Honors) from the University of Tulsa College of Law, and his LLM from the George Washington University Law School.