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$25 MILLION Recovery Against National Brokerage Firm
$9.1 MILLION FINRA Arbitration Award Against Brokerage Firm
$7.9 MILLION Securities Arbitration Award Against Stockbroker
$1 MILLION Securities Arbitration Award for Elder Financial Fraud
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Broker Bradley Drude Suspended and Fined due to Undisclosed Conflict of Interest on silverlaw.com

Drude’s failure to disclose details surrounding fraud of elder investor drives FINRA action

In response to allegations surrounding his relationship with an elderly investor, Louisiana-based broker Bradley Drude agreed to an Offer of Settlement to FINRA in which he was assessed a deferred fine of $25,000 and suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for six months, according to the FINRA Disciplinary Action report.

It is alleged that Drude failed to disclose that an elderly client had named him as executor and beneficiary in her will and granted him general power of attorney. It is also alleged that he typed a new will for the client naming himself as such and drove the client to a notary’s office to have her sign it—all without the involvement or assistance of the client’s attorney. The estate was valued at approximately $3 million. When the client requested a change to the will, it is alleged that Drude prepared a codicil to the will, but did not drive the client to the notary to have it notarized, knowing it would be invalid without notarization.

Philip Grasso Jr. Barred by FINRA Due to Allegations of Elder Fraud on silverlaw.com

Broker misconduct results in “substantial harm’ to elderly customers

Philip Leonard Grasso Jr.’s 18-year career in the securities industry is now over due to allegations of elder fraud, where he purportedly misused funds, willfully misrepresented material facts and failed to complete on-the-record testimony requested by FINRA.

According to the FINRA Disciplinary Action, Philip Grasso has been permanently barred from association with any FINRA member in any capacity as of May 2015. There are three causes of action included in the findings.

Broker Justin Amaral Permanently Barred from Securities Industry on silverlaw.com

Failure to provide on-the-record testimony to FINRA results in disciplinary action

After termination from employment with Morgan Stanley in 2014 following allegations surrounding his status as an executor and beneficiary in a client’s estate and his use of discretion in several client accounts, broker Justin Amaral has been permanently barred from the securities industry by FINRA.

According to Amaral’s BrokerCheck record, as of June 2015 the Boston-based broker’s 12 years in the securities industry has ended as a result of his failure to appear for an on-the-record testimony requested by FINRA during the course of an investigation. The requested testimony may be related to the reasons Morgan Stanley terminated Amaral’s employment.

Miami Broker Mikell Simmons Fined and Suspended by FINRA on silverlaw.com

Failure to disclose criminal charges results in $5,000 fine and suspension

During a 15-year career in the securities industry, Miami-based broker Mikell Simmons has seen a total of six disclosure events on his official record, the most recent of which includes a one-month suspension and a $5,000 fine.

According to Simmons’ FINRA BrokerCheck record, the Miami broker, most recently registered with Global Strategic Investments, failed to update his U4 form required by the regulatory body with information pertaining to criminal charges brought against him in February 2013 while he was employed by CP Capital Securities. Per FINRA broker requirements “an individual is under a continuing obligation to amend and update information required by Form U4 as changes occur.” As a result, on June 11, 2015, FINRA handed Simmons a one-month suspension along with a $5,000 fine.

UBS Ordered to Pay $33.5M in Puerto Rico Bond Settlement on silverlaw.com

SEC and FINRA allegations include supervisory failures

Both the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority have handed a UBS affiliate in Puerto Rico orders to pay a settlement in the amount of $33.5 million, according to Law360.com. The charges against the bank include failure to supervise a representative who allegedly manipulated investors in order to used borrowed money to buy up closed-ended bond funds. Silver Law Group currently represents hundreds of families in Puerto Rico for their losses in UBS bond funds.

The SEC has recently sued Jose G. Ramirez Jr., based on allegations that he tricked a handful of investors into using lines of credit to purchase up to $50 million worth of closed-end mutual funds. These funds plummeted when Puerto Rico’s bond market dropped in 2013.

South Florida Broker Brian Michael Berger Permanently Barred by FINRA on silverlaw.com

Allegations include elder fraud, misappropriation and failure to provide requested information

Following a fifteen-year career in the securities industry, Boca Raton-based financial adviser Brian M. Berger has been permanently barred from the industry due to allegations of funds misappropriation as well as failing to respond to FINRA requests for information.

According to official documents filed with FINRA in July, Berger was the subject of an investigation by FINRA for misappropriating funds from elderly customers while registered with Wells Fargo, LLC and MetLife Securities, Inc. When FINRA requested documentation and information from Berger, along with on-the-record testimony, Berger reportedly refused, resulting in his exile from the industry.

Broker Paul G. Shea (“Shea”)(CRD# 2868966) was permanently barred by FINRA commencing on July 16, 2015, for failing to respond to a FINRA request for information, pursuant to FINRA Rule 9552(d). Shea is barred from association with any FINRA member in any capacity. Shea failed to request termination of his suspension within 3 months of the date of his Notice of Suspension, and therefore, was automatically barred by FINRA (FINRA Rule 9552(h)).

Shea first became a registered securities broker in 1997 and was registered with Morgan Stanley DW Inc., from April 1997 – January 2006 (employed in Purchase, NY); and Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC from January 2006 – August 2014 (employed in Baltimore, MD).

According to FINRA, in 2014 a customer accused Shea of “investments that were an extreme departure from their investment directives” and “lack of contact from financial advisor, and financial losses.” Shea settled the claim with the customer in the amount of $25,000.

Silver Law Group is investigating Bruce Kane, 60, formerly of Ithaca, New York and currently residing in Fort Lauderdale, FL; Burton Greenberg, 75, of Plantation, Florida; and Senol Taskin, 50, of Ontario, Canada for their alleged involvement in an investment scheme that defrauded investors out of $10 milion. All three men have been indicted by a federal grand jury in upstate New York on wire fraud charges. Kane and Greenberg were both arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Florida earlier this week, while Taskin remains at-large and is believed to be living in Turkey.

According to the federal indictment, Kane — an accountant and the principal of a Florida-based investment partnership named Global Financial Fund 8 LLP — conspired with Greenberg — the President and CEO of both Transglobal Financial Services and M&P Global Financial Services Inc. — and Taskin to solicit investment funds that investors were told would be safely invested and held in American, Canadian, and Italian banks where they would generate significant profits as high as a 960 percent return on investment. Instead of investing the money in secure investments, the trio allegedly used the funds to pay off personal debts, pay rent on a waterfront condominium in South Florida, buy a boat, and make separate investments of their own. To avoid detection, Kane and Greenberg purportedly sent investors phony “profit” payments which were nothing more than partial returns of their principal investments. Additionally, Kane and Greenberg repeatedly assured investors by e-mail between 2004 and 2013 that their investments were secure and profitable, despite Kane and Greenberg allegedly knowing those assurances to be false. To assist in the conspiracy, Taskin purportedly provided Kane and Greenberg a phony Canadian bank statement to use at a meeting with investors so the investors would be lulled into believing their investments were secure when those funds had actually been transferred to a company co-owned by Taskin and used for his own personal or corporate purposes.

As set forth in court documents, Kane, Greenberg, and Taskin used over $6.1 milion of the funds for their own benefit — over $4.4 million of the money was diverted to bank accounts and companies controlled by Greenberg or his close relatives; approximately $1.6 million of the money went to Kane’s personal accounts and to pay for personal expenses of his such as credit cards, automobile and lease payments, and a boat and waterfront condominium he owned; and at least $240,000 of the victim investors’ funds were transferred to bank accounts in Turkey controlled by Taskin.

New York broker and financial advisor Paul Padovani (CRD# 2688559) was suspended by FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) for four months from associating with any FINRA firm in any capacity, for borrowing $75,000 from a customer. Padovani’s actions violated FINRA Rules 3240 and 2010. According to his Letter of Acceptance Waiver and Consent, Padovani repaid the loan but did not obtain approval prior to his taking the funds from his employer, Metlife Securities Inc. Padovani consented, without admitting or denying the allegations made against him by FINRA, to a four-month suspension in resolution of his disciplinary proceeding. The suspension is in effect from May18, 2015, through September 17, 2015.

Padovani began his employment with MetLife Securities in 2012.  He was previously employed by Morgan Stanley & Co. from 2009-2012, and Wachovia Securities LLC from 2003-2009.

If you invested money with Paul Padovani, Metlife Securities, Inc., Morgan Stanley, or Wachovia Securities and suffered losses, you may be entitled to recover some or all of those investment losses. Please call our securities law firm toll free at (800) 975-4345 to speak with an experienced attorney, and to find out how we may be able to help you to regain some or all of your losses. Most cases are handled on a contingent fee basis, meaning that you do not pay legal fees unless we are successful in your lawsuit.

SEC Reiterates Oil and Gas Fraud Investor Alert on silverlaw.com

Alert lists red flags and best practices for avoiding fraud

A relatively recent increase in fraud schemes involving oil and gas ventures has caused the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue an investor alert that educates investors by bringing to their attention the possibility of fraudulent endeavors and the warning signs they should be aware of.

The alert, originally posted in May 2013, is still relevant today, as the SEC recently announced charges in regards to an oil and gas scheme in California involving upwards of $12 million from more than 300 investors nationwide. <This would be a good place for an internal link to the other blog on Schumacher>

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