MICHAEL CORBETT MILNE FINED AND SUSPENDED BY FINRA FOR UNAUTHORIZED TRADES

Michael Corbett Milne, a broker formerly at St. Petersburg, Florida based Raymond James 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 exercised discretion in the customers' accounts by selling out positions that they held in a stock. Mr. Milne had previously discussed with his customers who held shares the strategy of selling this stock if a target price was reached or a downturn seemed likely and generally obtained approval of this approach. However, Milne did not obtain the customers' written authorization or his member firm's approval to exercise discretion, and in most cases he did not contact customers before selling the stock. Mr. Milne, of Ocala, Florida, was fined $5,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for 15 business days. The suspension was in effect from May 20, 2013 through June 10, 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 unauthorized trades or other prohibited activity can bring forth claims to recover losses against broker-dealers like Raymond James Financial Services, which should have prevented Mr. Milne from committing the above described conduct.

Have you suffered losses in your Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. account due to unauthorized 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 Financial Services, 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.

THEODORE EDWARD WILLIAMS JR. FINED AND SUSPENDED BY FINRA FOR UNAUTHORIZED TRADES

Theodore Edward Williams Jr., a broker with St. Petersburg, Florida based Raymond James & Associates, Inc. and formerly with Chicago, Illinois based Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett, Inc., submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent in which he consented to the entry of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's (FINRA) findings that he effected trades on a discretionary basis in a joint account his customer controlled without the customer's prior written authorization and his firms' prior written acceptance of the account as discretionary. FINRA stated that Mr. Williams engaged in discretionary trading within the customer's account despite the fact that his firms' procedures did not permit discretionary trading in brokerage accounts. Mr. Williams, of Lake Forest, Illinois, was fined $5,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for 10 business days.

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. As a result, investors who have suffered damages due to unauthorized trades can bring forth claims to recover losses against broker-dealers like Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett and Raymond James, which should have prevented the above described illegal activity. Have you suffered losses in your Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett, Inc. and/or Raymond James & Associates, 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.

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.