SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION FREEZES ONYX PHARMACEUTICALS INSIDER TRADERS' ASSETS

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has obtained an emergency court order to freeze assets of traders using foreign accounts to realize approximately $4.6 million in potentially illegal profits by trading in advance of the June 30, 2013 announcement that Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. had received but rejected an acquisition offer from Amgen, Inc. The SEC alleges that unknown traders took risky bets that Onyx's stock price would increase by purchasing call options on June 26, 27 and 28 - the three trading days before the announcement. The emergency court order obtained on July 3, 2013 freezes the traders' assets related to the Onyx call options transactions and prohibits the traders from destroying any evidence. The SEC is seeking a final judgment ordering the traders to disgorge their profits with interest, pay monetary penalties, and permanently bar them from future violations.

According to the SEC complaint, certain unknown traders were in possession of material nonpublic information about the offer to acquire Onyx at a substantial premium over the stock price at the time they purchased Onyx call options, many of which were out-of-the-money, in the three trading days before the announcement. The complaint further stated that the timing and size of the trades were highly suspicious because they constituted large increases over the historical volume for those call options purchased. The SEC's complaint charges the unknown traders with violating Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Exchange Act Rule 10b-5.

Generally, illegal insider trading is the act of buying or selling a security, in breach of a fiduciary duty or other relationship of trust and confidence, while in possession of material, nonpublic information about a company. Insider trading violations may also include "tipping" such information, trading by the person tipped - the "tippee," and trading by those who misappropriate such information. Section 10(b) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 makes it unlawful for any person to "use or employ, in connection with the purchase or sale of any security registered on a national securities exchange or any security not so registered, any manipulative or deceptive device or contrivance in contravention of such rules and regulations as the [SEC] may prescribe." To implement Section 10(b), the SEC adopted Rule 10b-5, which makes it unlawful to engage in fraud or misrepresentation in connection with the purchase or sale of a security.

Robert Wayne Pearce, a former SEC Enforcement Attorney, has litigated SEC actions for over 33 years, including, but not limited to, insider trading, stock market manipulation, and other alleged violations of the Federal securities laws. If you have been contacted by the SEC or believe that you may be subject of an investigation, call Mr. Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce defends companies and individuals who may be the subject of an SEC investigation or enforcement action regarding their alleged involvement in securities laws violations.

This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 33 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to representing investors and financial industry professionals throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

SEC SWEEPS THE MARKET FOR RULE 105 REGULATION M VIOLATIONS

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has a task force that is sweeping the market for Rule 105 Regulation M (Rule 105) violations. Rule 105 makes it unlawful for a person to purchase equity securities from an underwriter, broker, or dealer participating in a public offering if that person sold short the security that is the subject of the offering during the restricted period defined in the rule, absent an exception. Rule 105 defines the restricted period as the shorter of the period: (1) beginning five business days prior to the pricing of the offered securities and ending with such pricing; or (2) beginning with the initial filing of such registration statement or notification on Form 1-A or Form 1-E and ending with the pricing. The SEC adopted Rule 105 to prevent potentially manipulative activity. Also, Rule 105 is a prophylactic. Therefore, its provisions apply regardless of the short seller's intent.

The latest victim to be sanctioned in the SEC sweep is Chicago, Illinois based UBS O'Connor, LLC. UBS O'Connor allegedly violated Rule 105 sixteen times between January 2009 and March 2011 in connection with short sales it executed within the Rule 105 restricted period and subsequent purchase of the securities in firm commitment public offerings. UBS O'Connor consented to the entry of the Order in anticipation of the institution of proceedings by submitting an Offer of Settlement, which the Commission has determined to accept. UBS O'Connor was ordered to cease-and-desist, pay disgorgement in the amount of $3,787,590, prejudgment interest totaling $369,766, and a civil penalty of $1,140,000 to the United States Treasury.

Robert Wayne Pearce, a former SEC Enforcement Attorney, has litigated SEC actions for over 33 years, including, but not limited to, Regulation M, section 16(b) short-swing profits, insider trading, stock market manipulation, and other alleged violations of the Federal securities laws. If you have been contacted by the SEC and believe that you may be subject to an investigation involving a Rule 105 Regulation M violation or any other SEC rule, call Mr. Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce defends companies and individuals who may be the subject of an SEC investigation or enforcement action regarding their alleged involvement in securities laws violations.

This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 33 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to representing investors and financial industry professionals throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website,  www.secatty.com post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

JONATHAN GORDON SORENSEN PERMANENTLY BARRED BY FINRA FOR ALLEGED CONVERSION AND MISUSE OF INVESTOR FUNDS

Jonathan Gordon Sorensen, a former broker at Jackson, Mississippi based Coker & Palmer, Inc., submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he consented to the described sanction and to the entry of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's (FINRA) findings that he failed to appear for a FINRA on-the-record interview and, subsequently through his attorney, informed FINRA that he would not appear for an on-the-record interview. The findings stated that Mr. Sorensen's appearance was requested as part of an investigation into his management of a limited partnership investment fund while associated with his member firm and whether he had converted and/or misused investor funds and falsified documents in connection with his management of the fund. Mr. Sorensen, of Maitland, Florida, was barred from association with any FINRA member in any capacity.

Broker-dealers must establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system to protect customers from broker misconduct. If broker-dealers do not establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system, they may be liable to investors for damages flowing from the misconduct. Therefore, investors who may have suffered damages due to Mr. Sorensen's alleged conversion and misuse of funds may bring forth claims to recover losses against Coker & Palmer.

 Have you suffered losses in your Coker & Palmer, Inc. account due to broker misconduct? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Mr. Sorensen and Coker & Palmer, Inc. whose stockbrokers may have engaged in misconduct and caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

WOODBURY FINANCIAL SERVICES INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Woodbury Financial Services, a subsidiary of the AIG Insurance Company, is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Oakdale, Minnesota and reportedly has over 2300 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Woodbury Financial Services broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Woodbury Financial Services broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Woodbury Financial Services brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Woodbury Financial Services stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

FINRA SUSPENDS MICHAEL ANTONIO ZURITA FOR SIX MONTHS FOR FAILURE TO ESTABLISH AND IMPLEMENT SUPERVISORY SYSTEM

Michael Antonio Zurita, a former broker at Orlando, Florida based Orion Trading, LLC, submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which Mr. Zurita consented to the described sanction and to the entry of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's (FINRA) findings that he failed to reasonably supervise the sale of unregistered shares of low-priced stock of issuers on behalf of customers. One of the firm's registered representatives effected the sale of the unregistered stocks and failed to conduct a searching inquiry to ensure the sales did not violate Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933. The representative completed deposited securities request (DSR) forms and submitted them to Mr. Zurita for review. Mr. Zurita's review process primarily involved ensuring the forms had been completed in full, but he failed to ensure that the information was accurate, consistent and did not raise any red flags. Mr. Zurita relied on the representative to obtain all relevant information and documentation and determine on his own that the shares were registered or exempt from registration and, according to FINRA, he failed to ensure the representative complied with the requirements of Section 5 and failed to reasonably supervise the sale of unregistered securities.

In FINRA's findings, the Regulator stated that as the President and CCO of his member firm, Mr. Zurita was responsible for developing and maintaining an adequate supervisory system as well as the firm's written supervisory procedures (WSPs) to ensure compliance with applicable laws. Mr. Zurita failed to have procedures in place to prevent the sale of unregistered securities not exempt from registration and that would have identified which individuals were to perform each step of the review and approval process. The findings also stated that Mr. Zurita failed to establish an adequate supervisory system to ensure that unregistered securities were freely tradable. The system was inadequate because it simply required that a principal ensure a DSR form was completed in full, rather than investigate each transaction to determine the existence of any red flags.

Thus, Mr. Zurita, of Orlando, Florida, was suspended from association with any FINRA member in any principal capacity for six months for failure to establish and implement a supervisory system. The suspension is in effect from April 15, 2013, through October 14, 2013.

Broker-dealers must establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system to protect customers from broker misconduct. If broker-dealers do not establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system, they may be liable to investors for damages flowing from the misconduct. Therefore, investors who have suffered damages due to inadequate supervisory systems can bring forth claims to recover losses against broker-dealers such as Orion Trading. Have you suffered losses in your Orion Trading, LLC account due to stockbroker misconduct and/or unsupervised activities? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Mr. Zurita and Orion Trading, LLC whose stockbrokers may have engaged in misconduct and caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

WILLIAMS FINANCIAL GROUP INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Williams Financial Group is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Dallas, Texas and reportedly has over 260 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Williams Financial Group broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Williams Financial Group broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these Independent broker-dealers.
There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Williams Financial Group brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Williams Financial Group stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

FINRA FINES AND SUSPENDS MICHAEL JOHN WOODS FOR VIOLATIONS INVOLVING ELDER CUSTOMER'S FUNDS

Michael John Woods, a broker formerly at New Brighton, Pennsylvania based Fortune Financial Services, Inc., submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he consented to the described sanctions and to the entry of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's (FINRA) findings that he engaged in an outside business activity without providing written notice to his firm. FINRA's findings stated that Mr. Woods obtained signature authority on the firm customer's bank account and wrote checks to pay the customer's monthly bills in exchange for fees that totaled at least $1,500. The customer was 78 years old at the time, was arthritic, and according to Mr. Woods, needed help to manage his affairs. FINRA also stated that Mr. Woods created a false document bearing the customer's photocopied signature from a variable annuity withdrawal form the customer had previously signed. Mr. Woods dated the new form and submitted the document to the annuity issuer three days after the customer died. The withdrawn monies were deposited into the customer's bank account, which Mr. Woods controlled as the trustee of the customer's trust. Mr. Woods issued checks drawn from that bank account to pay himself fees for estate services that he rendered as trustee of the trust. FINRA's findings also included that Mr. Woods willfully failed to timely disclose federal tax liens levied against him on his Form U4.

Mr. Woods, of Dexter, Michigan, was fined $20,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for two years. The fine must be paid either immediately upon Mr. Woods' re-association with a FINRA member firm following his suspension or prior to the filing of any application or request for relief from any statutory disqualification, whichever is earlier. The suspension is in effect from May 6, 2013 through May 5, 2015.

Broker-dealers must establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system to protect customers from broker misconduct. If broker-dealers do not establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system, they may be liable to investors for damages flowing from the misconduct. Therefore, investors who have suffered damages due to broker misconduct can bring forth claims to recover losses against broker-dealers such as Fortune Financial Services, Inc. Have you suffered losses in your Fortune Financial Services, Inc. account due to broker misconduct? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Mr. Woods and Fortune Financial Services, Inc. whose stockbrokers may have engaged in misconduct and caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

WELLS FARGO ADVISORS FINANCIAL NETWORK INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri and reportedly has over 1000 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

FINRA FINES AND SUSPENDS FRANK JOHN TARAZON FOR BORROWING ELDERLY CUSTOMER'S FUNDS

Frank John Tarazon, a former broker at Des Moines, Iowa based ING Financial Partners, Inc., submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he consented to the described sanctions and to the entry of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's (FINRA) findings that he borrowed a total of $368,692 from an elderly customer contrary to his member firm's policies and procedures, which prohibited registered representatives from borrowing money from customers, except from immediate family members. The findings stated that Mr. Tarazon never sought permission to borrow funds from the customer, and the firm was unaware of the customer's loans to Mr. Tarazon. The findings also stated that Mr. Tarazon maintained or had a financial interest in brokerage accounts held outside his member firm without providing the firm with written notice of these accounts or receiving the firm's prior approval to open or hold an interest in the accounts. The findings further included that Mr. Tarazon was designated as a successor trustee to the customer's trust and as a beneficiary to that trust. Mr. Tarazon's firm's policies and procedures prohibited registered representatives from being named as a beneficiary on an account or from acting in the capacity of a guardianship, conservator, trustee, power of attorney, or any similar type of relationship on behalf of any unrelated person without first obtaining the firm's written approval. This prohibition included acting as a beneficiary of a trust or estate. FINRA found that during his firm's annual inspections, Mr. Tarazon falsely stated to his supervisor that he did not have any undisclosed outside brokerage accounts. Mr. Tarazon also falsely stated on annual business questionnaires that he had not been named as a trustee or beneficiary of a customer's trust.

Mr. Tarazon, of Oxnard, California, was fined $20,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for six months. The fine must be paid either immediately upon Mr. Tarazon's re-association with a FINRA member firm following his suspension, or prior to the filing of any application or request for relief from any statutory disqualification, whichever is earlier. The suspension is in effect from April 15, 2013 through October 14, 2013.

Broker-dealers must establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system to protect customers from broker misconduct. If broker-dealers do not establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system, they may be liable to investors for damages flowing from the misconduct. Therefore, investors who have suffered damages due to their broker's violation of firm policies and procedures can bring forth claims to recover losses against broker-dealers such as ING Financial Partners. Have you suffered losses in your ING Financial Partners, Inc. account due to broker misconduct? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Mr. Tarazon and ING Financial Partners, Inc. whose stockbrokers may have engaged in misconduct and caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

WALL STREET FINANCIAL INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Wall Street Financial is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Fairport, New York and reportedly has over 170 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Wall Street Financial broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Wall Street Financial broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Wall Street Financial brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Wall Street Financial stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

WALNUT STREET SECURITIES INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Walnut Street Securities, Inc., a subsidiary of the MetLife Broker-Dealer Group, which is owned by the Metropolitan Insurance Company, is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in New York City and reportedly has over 600 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Walnut Street Securities broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Walnut Street Securities broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Walnut Street Securities brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Walnut Street Securities stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

WADDELL REED INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Waddell Reed, a subsidiary of Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc., is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Overland, Kansas and reportedly has over 2000 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Waddell Reed broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Waddell Reed broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.
The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Waddell Reed brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Waddell Reed stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

UNITED PLANNERS FINANCIAL SERVICES INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

United Planners Financial Services is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona and reportedly has over 300 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a United Planners Financial Services broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a United Planners Financial Services broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your United Planners Financial Services brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against United Planners Financial Services stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

STEPHEN GRIVAS NAMED IN FINRA COMPLAINT FOR ALLEGEDLY MISAPPROPRIATING PRIVATE PLACEMENT FUNDS

Stephen Grivas, a broker at Woodbury, NY based Obsidian Financial Group, LLC, was named a respondent in a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) complaint alleging that he formed Obsidian Social Network Fund I to pool funds for the sole purpose of acquiring, holding and/or selling Facebook shares. The complaint alleges that the fund's intention, as set out in the private placement memorandum (PPM), was to purchase shares of Facebook on the secondary market for private company stock. Investors in the fund were allegedly supposed to gain an indirect interest in privately held Facebook stock before an initial public offering. The complaint alleges that Mr. Grivas was the sole designated manager for the fund and had sole authority to invest fund assets, pay fund expenses and otherwise transfer the assets of the fund. Further, Mr. Grivas allegedly had sole signatory authority over the fund's operating account, which invested the fund's assets and the fund's management account, which was set up to receive any of the management fees due to the fund. The complaint also alleges that Obsidian Financial Group was one of the placement agents that sold interests in the fund. Obsidian Social Network Fund used the money raised from the offering to purchase Facebook shares. However, due to limited availability of shares in the secondary market, the fund was unable to invest all the funds it raised into Facebook shares.

In addition, the complaint alleges that Mr. Grivas wired $224,046 from the fund's operating account to its management account as his management fee pursuant to the terms of the fund's PPM, which was two percent of the gross proceeds of the offering. Mr. Grivas also allegedly wired an additional $280,000 from the fund's operating account to its management account and then immediately transferred the $280,000 from the fund's management account to a bank account that he owns and maintains for his personal investment purposes with the sole authority to withdraw funds from the account. The same day, Mr. Grivas allegedly wired the entire $280,000 from his bank account to the bank account of his firm's holding company and wired $280,000 from the holding company's bank account to his firm's bank account, which was experiencing financial difficulties.

FINRA further alleges that the firm submitted a Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Rule 17a-11(b) notification, indicating that the firm had a net capital deficiency of $110,000 and that the firm had received a capital contribution of $280,000, which allowed the firm to get back into net capital compliance. According to the complaint, Mr. Grivas was not entitled to withdraw $280,000 and transfer it to his capital-deficient firm. Neither the fund's PPM nor the operating agreement allegedly allowed Mr. Grivas to receive more than the maximum 2 percent management fee from the fund, which he had already withdrawn. Mr. Grivas allegedly did not provide any notice, before or afterward, to the investors in the fund that he was allegedly withdrawing $280,000 from the fund or using proceeds of the fund to capitalize his firm.

Moreover, the complaint alleges that for purposes of assisting with the fund's business activities, Mr. Grivas retained a consultant on behalf of the fund. However, Mr. Grivas did not disclose to the consultant that he had allegedly transferred $280,000 from the fund to the firm until the day before the consultant provided investigative testimony to FINRA. Up until then, the consultant sent Mr. Grivas several emails informing him that the fund needed to return the remaining un-invested funds to investors. The complaint alleges that fund investors have not received a return of their remaining funds and Mr. Grivas, of Jericho, New York, has not returned the $280,000 to any of the fund's bank accounts.

Broker-dealers must establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system to protect customers from broker misconduct. If broker-dealers do not establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system, they may be liable to investors for damages flowing from the misconduct. Therefore, investors who have suffered damages due to Mr. Grivas' alleged misappropriations can bring forth claims to recover losses against Obsidian Financial Group, which could have prevented Mr. Grivas from committing the alleged illegal activity. Have you suffered losses in Obsidian Social Network Fund I due to Mr. Grivas' alleged misconduct? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Obsidian Financial Group, LLC stockbrokers who may have engaged in misconduct and caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

PAUL DAVID ARNOLD NAMED IN FINRA COMPLAINT FOR ALLEGEDLY MISAPPROPRIATING ELDER CLIENT'S FUNDS

Paul David Arnold, a former broker with St. Petersburg, FL based Raymond James & Associates, Inc., was named a respondent in a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) complaint alleging that he misappropriated and misused funds totaling $173,600 from an elderly customer. Mr. Arnold allegedly had the customer sign blank checks that Mr. Arnold later made payable to his wife or son without the customer's authorization. The customer allegedly thought the blank checks that Mr. Arnold had him sign were being used to pay the customer's bills, which were not being used for that purpose. The complaint further alleges that Mr. Arnold, of Clearwater, Florida, failed to appear and provide testimony in connection with a FINRA investigation.

Broker-dealers must establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system to protect customers from broker misconduct. If broker-dealers do not establish and implement a reasonable supervisory system, they may be liable to investors for damages flowing from the misconduct. Therefore, investors who have suffered damages due to broker misappropriations such as those misappropriations allegedly committed by Mr. Arnold can bring forth claims to recover losses against Raymond James & Associates, which could have prevented brokers from committing illegal activity.

Have you suffered losses in your Raymond James & Associates, Inc. or any other brokerage account due to misappropriations by your broker? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Raymond James & Associates, Inc. stockbrokers who may have engaged in misconduct and caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

TRUSTMONT FINANCIAL INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Trustmont Financial Group, Inc. is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Greensburg, Pennsylvania and reportedly has over 170 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Trustmont Financial broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Trustmont Financial broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Trustmont Financial brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Trustmont Financial stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

TRIAD ADVISORS INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Triad Advisors, Inc., a subsidiary of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services, Inc., is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and reportedly has over 600 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Triad Advisors broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Triad Advisors broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Triad Advisors brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Triad Advisors stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

TRANSAMERICA FINANCIAL ADVISORS INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Transamerica Financial Advisors, Inc., a subsidiary of the Transamerica Insurance Company, is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida and reportedly has over 1300 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Transamerica Financial Advisors broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Transamerica Financial Advisors broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Transamerica Financial Advisors brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Transamerica Financial Advisors stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

TOWER SQUARE SECURITIES INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Tower Square Securities, Inc., a subsidiary of the MetLife Broker-Dealer Group, which is owned by the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in New York City and reportedly has over 400 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Tower Square Securities broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Tower Square Securities broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.
Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Tower Square Securities brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Tower Square Securities stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.

SYNERGY INVESTMENT GROUP INVESTOR ALERT - WATCH OUT FOR CHURNING AND UNSUITABLE INVESTMENTS!

Synergy Investment Group is an independent broker-dealer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina and reportedly has over 80 registered representatives across the United States operating in one or two person offices. Its branch offices are largely comprised of small producers earning commissions at higher pay out rates than the major full-service brokerage firms, a recipe for disaster when it comes to protecting investors from churning and unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies!

Churning is a violation of Federal and state securities statutes, industry rules and regulations and a breach of fiduciary duty to investors under common law. Churning can occur if a Synergy Investment Group broker exercises control over the investment decisions in your account and purchases stocks or recommends that you purchase and sell stocks for his benefit, i.e., commissions not yours! These trades rarely, if ever, make the investor any money. In fact, the additional commissions raise the break-even point for the investor to the level where the stock must perform at an extremely high level in order for the investor to make any money.

In every broker-investor relationship, the broker must assess what the investor's goals are as well as his or her risk tolerance. This assessment is based on a number of key factors, including the investor's stated objectives, risk tolerance, financial condition and tax status. It is the broker's responsibility to only pursue investments suitable for that investor based on these factors. A stockbroker is obligated to only recommend suitable investments and investment strategies. If a Synergy Investment Group broker recommends unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies, it can leave you vulnerable to unnecessary risk and losses.

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors' rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor's compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers.

There is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to excessive purchases and sales of securities and securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. Generally, no manager is onsite to detect the placement of inaccurate information about a client's investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. There is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, there may be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices. These independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms.

Have you suffered losses in your Synergy Investment Group brokerage account? If so, call Robert Pearce at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. for a free consultation. Mr. Pearce is accepting clients with valid claims against Synergy Investment Group stockbrokers who engaged in churning, recommended unsuitable investments and unsuitable investment strategies that caused investors losses.

The most important of investors' rights is the right to be informed! This Investors' Rights blog post is by the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., located in Boca Raton, Florida. For over 30 years, Attorney Pearce has tried, arbitrated, and mediated hundreds of disputes involving complex securities, commodities and investment law issues. The lawyers at our law firm are devoted to protecting investors' rights throughout the United States and internationally! Please visit our website, www.secatty.com, post a comment, call (800) 732-2889, or email Mr. Pearce at pearce@rwpearce.com for answers to any of your questions about this blog post and/or any related matter.