After graduating from Middlebury College, Rick spent 17 years in the steel business before beginning his career at Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 1991. Rick brings to his clients a unique style of straight-forward communication, sensitivity and wisdom. Rick holds the Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®) designation, and he employs a strategic approach to asset allocation and risk control for each of his clients.

Rick has been named a Financial Times 400 Adviser in 2013, 2014, 2018, 2019 and 2020 (*Published annually Mar – April. Rankings based on data as of June 30
of prior year), as well as a Barron’s Top 1200 Adviser in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021 (*Published annually in March. Rankings based on data as of September 30 of prior year). He was named to the Forbes "Best-in-State Advisors" list in 2021 (*Published on February 11, 2021. Rankings based on data as of June 30, 2020.)

Rick is actively involved in his local community of Branford as a Police Commissioner. In addition, he has served on various boards including The New Haven Symphony Orchestra, The Steinert Society, The Goodwin-Levine Adult Day Center, and the Representative Town Meeting for Branford.

For fun, Rick is an avid skier, keyboardist, windsurfer, golfer and fisherman. He is also a competent martial artist, currently working to attain his Fourth degree Black belt, Master rank, in Taekwondo. 

Rick lives with his wife, Dr. Rachel Lampert, and daughter, Jessie Claire, in Branford, Connecticut.

*Asset allocation does not ensure profit or protect against loss in declining markets.

*Source: Financial Times “400 Top Financial Advisers” list, published annually Mar - April. Rankings based on data as of June 30 of prior year.
The Financial Times “400 Top Financial Advisers” (FT 400) list is an independent listing produced annually by Ignites Research, a division of Money-Media, Inc., on behalf of the Financial Times. The FT 400 is based on data gathered from advisers, broker-dealer home offices, regulatory disclosures, and the FT’s research. The listing reflects each adviser’s status in six primary areas: assets under management (AUM), asset growth, compliance record, experience, credentials and online accessibility. This award does not evaluate the quality of services provided to clients and is not indicative of this adviser’s future performance. Neither the brokerages nor the advisers pay a fee to the Financial Times in exchange for inclusion in the FT 400. Rankings and recognition from the Financial Times are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results, and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement of the adviser. All rights reserved.

*Source: The Barron’s “Top 1,200 Financial Advisors: State-by-State” list, published annually in March. Rankings based on data as of September 30 of prior year.
The Barron’s “Top 1,200 Financial Advisors” ranking considered advisors with a minimum of seven years financial services experience and who have been employed at their current firm for at least one year. This is a list of the top advisors in each state, with the number of ranking spots determined by each state’s population and wealth. Other quantitative and qualitative measures include assets under management, revenues generated by advisors for their firms, and the quality of the advisors’ practices, regulatory records, internal company documents, and 100-plus points of data provided by the advisors themselves. Rankings and recognition from Barron’s are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results, and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement of the advisor. Barron’s is a trademark of Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

*Source: The Forbes “Best-in-State Wealth Advisors” list, published on February 11, 2021. Rankings based on data as of June 30, 2020.
Data provided by SHOOK™ Research, LLC. The Forbes “Best-in-State Wealth Advisors” ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person and telephone due diligence meetings to evaluate each advisor qualitatively, a major component of a ranking algorithm that includes: client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. Rankings are based on the opinions of SHOOK Research, LLC and not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Rankings and recognition from Forbes are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results, and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement of the advisor. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receives compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. Forbes is a trademark of Forbes Media LLC. All rights reserved.

Sophie is a graduate of Vassar College and joined Merrill Lynch Wealth Management in 2019 as a Registered Wealth Management Client Associate. At Vassar, she majored in Women's Studies and held several leadership roles. During her semester abroad in Madagascar, she conducted large scale research projects in French. 

Sophie leads our office volunteer efforts such as the holiday food bank drive and financial literacy programs. Sophie is from Guilford, Connecticut. She enjoys surfing, sailing and hiking.