Associated Person

It sounds so devious. Picture a bright light shining in your face and a dark voice asking, "Are you now or have you ever been associated with an associated person?" The reality is far less ominous.

An "associated person" is just a principal of a FINRA-covered firm. They are "associated" with it and have to follow the firm's standards in their behavior (and in their golf game). If the firm has a softball team, they're probably part of it. Yawn.