Jim Charles

Jim Charles knows all too well about the negative impact of divorce. As a teenager, he watched his parents go through an acrimonious litigated divorce that lasted for years. And he went through his own ‘gray divorce’ in the last decade. Because of these experiences Jim is committed to using his skills and expertise to help others minimize the pain and stress of divorce – particularly around finances.

Jim was inspired to pursue a career in financial services after meeting and working with a financial planner in his mid-20’s. He began by obtaining a master’s degree in Personal Financial Planning. Over the next few years he also became a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional and a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) charterholder. Thus began a rewarding, three-plus decade career, working with both private clients as well as some of the largest institutional investors and sovereign wealth funds in the world which required the need to harness and satisfy the sometimes-competing motives of multiple stakeholders. In 2021, he retired while co-Head of Dimensional Fund Advisors’ Institutional distribution channel for North America.

Jim came out of retirement in 2023 and along with his wife Sarah, launched Sanctuary Financial Planning – an hourly only, fee-only planning practice. He holds the CDFA® (Certified Divorce Financial Analyst) designation and has completed the necessary training specifically to work as a financial neutral in collaborative divorce cases and help minimize the financial frictions divorcing couples often face.

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