A National Securities Arbitration & Investment Fraud Law Firm
CRD#265697
Silver Law Group is investigating former Melville, New York-based UBS Financial Services Inc broker Michael Keane, after multiple customer allegations of unsuitable investment recommendations where received by FINRA.
CRD#2393464
Silver Law Group is investigating Jacksonville, Florida-based LPL Financial broker Melvin Case following multiple customer complaints alleging unsuitable investment recommendations, churning, and misrepresentation.
Case is not currently employed by any FINRA registered brokerage. He was previously employed by firm LPL at their Jacksonville, FL office, where he was employed since 2008. Case was discharged from LPL over allegations of criminal charges involving exploitation of an aged adult after converting the victim’s money to his own benefit.
According to FINRA’s BrokerCheck report on Case, a complaint was received in August of 2017 alleging that Case had provided unsuitable investment recommendations and engaged in churning and misrepresentation. The complaint alleges over $6,000 in damages and settled in September for $9,023.
An unsuitable recommendation is a serious form of potential broker misconduct. A broker’s employing firm is responsible for overseeing the broker to prevent such misconduct. Failure to supervise is a claim made against a brokerage firm in these situations.
Unauthorized trading occurs when a broker facilitates a transaction without the permission of the customer in a non-discretionary account. According to FINRA, it is one of the common investor issues along with misrepresentation, cold-calling, and unsuitability.
Often, unauthorized trading is accompanied by churning. Churning occurs when the account frequently trades for no apparent reason but to generate fees and commissions.
Also, among other investment tenets, brokers are required to recommend suitable investments to their customers. This requires that the broker: Investigates and conducts due diligence into the investment’s attributes including its benefits, risks, tax consequences, and other relevant factors to form a reasonable basis for the recommendation of the product; and appropriately matches the investment with the customer’s specific investment needs and objectives, such as the customer’s retirement status, long or short-term goals, age, disability, income needs, or any other relevant factors.
When a broker or brokerage firm fails to recommend investments to its customers along those guidelines, there must be accountability. If you have lost money on an investment that did not fit your investment profile, you may be able to recover some or all of your lost money.
FINRA arbitration is a fast, efficient way to recover your lost investment funds due to unsuitable investment recommendation or unauthorized trading. The Silver Law Group works on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay us nothing unless we recover money for you. Our Florida licensed attorneys can represent you in any Florida securities or investment fraud matter.
If you invested with LPL Financial and Melvin Case and have lost money doing so, you may be able to recover some or all of your losses. We are experienced in recovering investor losses due to broker/brokerage firm misconduct and mismanagement through FINRA arbitration.
Silver Law Group represents the interests of investors who have been the victims of investment fraud. If you have questions about your legal rights, please contact Scott Silver of the Silver Law Group for a free consultation at ssilver@silverlaw.com or toll-free at (800) 975-4345.
CRD#4121845
Silver Law Group is investigating The Woodlands, Texas-based Oppenheimer & Co broker David Krumrey following a customer complaint alleging unauthorized trading,
CRD#1727785
Silver Law Group is investigating former Chicago, Illinois-based National Securities Corporation broker Rick Konecny, after multiple customer allegations of misrepresentation, unsuitable recommendations and overconcentration were received by FINRA.
CRD#2311741
Silver Law Group is investigating Sterling Heights, Michigan-based CoreCap broker Ernest J. Romer, after customer allegations of misrepresentation and unsuitable recommendations where received by FINRA and he was subsequently permanently barred from the industry.
CRD#2370593
Silver Law Group is investigating former Washington DC-based Morgan Stanley broker Peter J. Doyle after a customer was awarded in excess of $8,000,000 million for alleged unsuitable investment advice, misrepresentation and elder abuse.
CRD#5475175
Silver Law Group is investigating former Melville, New York-based LPL Financial broker Thomas Borruso after a customer allegation of breach of unsuitable investment recommendations and over concentration was received by FINRA.
Silver Law Group continues to investigate investments in oil, gas, and energy companies made by clients through master limited partnerships (“MLPs”) at the recommendation of their brokers. As a result of high oil prices over the past few years, there has been a heightened interest in investments in oil and gas using MLPs. Now with the drop in the price of oil and gas, investors who may have been looking for conservative investments without significant risk are facing substantial drops in their portfolios. Investors are further discovering that conflicts of interest between the investment bank, trading desk, and individual advisor influenced stockbroker’s recommendations.
These alternative investments in oil and gas typical take the form of Master Limited Partnerships (“MLPs”). These types of alternative investments have historically been extremely risky investments that demand a careful suitability analysis and due diligence by financial processionals before they are recommended to the public. More often than not, broker-dealers and brokers are enamored with these types of investments because they, like other alternative investments, also tend to pay high commissions.
In a recent Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) arbitration proceeding, RBC Capital Markets and its broker Bruce Cameron were ordered to pay a former client $723,000 for losses sustained from investing in MLPs. The claims included overconcentration in unsuitable investments (MLPs), negligence, and failure to supervise. Cameron was registered with the RBC Massachusetts office.
Ricardo F. Guimares
CRD#5442981
Silver Law Group is investigating Miami, New Florida-based Wells Fargo broker Ricardo Guimares after a customer complaint alleging unsuitable investment advice.
Harold J. Lauber
CRD#2001512
Silver Law Group is investigating Naples, Florida-based Herbert J. Sims & Co broker Harold Lauber, after a customer allegation of unsuitable investment recommendations was received by FINRA.
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