Securities Arbitration Lawyers Blog

Walter Valenzuela Subject Of Two Multimillion-Dollar Customer Disputes

January 30, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Walter Roland Valenzuela (CRD #2280224) is a registered broker and investment advisor currently employed with Hilltop Securities Inc. (CRD #6220) of Del Mar, CA. His only previous employer was M.L. Stern & Co., LLC. (CRD #8327) of San Diego, CA, where he worked until 2008. He has been in the industry since 1993.

Valenzuela is the subject of seven disclosures, all customer disputes. The most recent dispute was filed on 7/23/20018. Alleging unsuitable recommendations, misrepresentation and excessive trading, the client is requesting damages of $3,000,000. This case is “pending,” and no additional information is available.

Three Individuals Charged by the SEC for Defrauding Elderly Clients on elderfinancialfraudattorneys.com Another still-pending dispute was filed on 8/24/2017, and will be in securities arbitration. The client lists multiple allegations, including elder abuse, financial exploitation, breach of fiduciary duty, excessive trading and misrepresentation. The damages requested are listed at $9,500,000.00. However the claim has no damage amount listed, and the final sum will be determined in arbitration.

FINRA Suspends Registered Individuals in January 2019 for Failing to Comply with FINRA Rules

January 30, 2019 | Silver Law Group

According to FINRA Disciplinary actions for January 2019, the following individuals were suspended from FINRA for failing to comply with a FINRA arbitration award or settlement agreement pursuant to FINRA rules:

NAME	FORMER EMPLOYERS
Ballard, Timothy	Securities Americva
	National Planning Corp
Cunningham, Christopher	Fulcrum Securities
	Wells Fargo Advisors
Montano, Roberto	Waddell & Reed
	US Bancorp Investments
Plummer, Mark	Chestnut Exploration Partners
	Plummer Holdings
Sanford, Christopher	Natwest Markets Securities
	Amherst Pierpont
Vandyke, Victoria	Corinthian Partners
	Matrix USA LLC
White, Harold	Willow Cove Investment Group
	R.W. Towt & Assoc
Wilde, Maurice	Newbridge Securities Corp
	IFS Securities
Wood, Stephen	UBS Financial Services Inc
	Morgan Stanley

Silver Law Group represents investors in securities and investment fraud cases through FINRA arbitration or court. Our lawyers are admitted to practice in New York and Florida and represent investors nationwide in securities arbitration to help recover investment losses due to stockbroker misconduct. If you have any questions about how your account has been handled, call to speak with an experienced securities attorney. Most cases handled on a contingent fee basis meaning that you do not pay legal fees unless we are successful.

Our lawyers have extensive experience collecting FINRA arbitration awards, prevailing on Motions to Vacate FINRA arbitration awards and using various collection efforts to enforce FINRA awards after they are received.

Michael Venturino Customer Disputes Total $1.6M

January 30, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Michael Christopher Venturino (CRD #5872439) is a registered broker currently employed with Spartan Capital Securities, LLC (CRD #146251) of Garden City, NY. His previous employers include Trident Partners Ltd. (CRD #41258) of Woodbury, NY and Aegis Capital Corp. (CRD #15007) of Melville, NY. Two other prior employers, Craig Scott Capital, LLC (CRD #155924) and Brookstone Securities, Inc. (CRD #13366), both of Uniondale, NY, have been expelled by FINRA. He has been in the industry since 2010.

Venturino is the subject of 8 disclosures, most recently on 9/11/2018. This customer dispute alleges that from 12/24/14 to 02/28/18, he engaged in misrepresentation, unsuitable recommendations and churning. The client has requested damages of $290,359.83. This case is pending.

FINRA filed a disclosure on 7/17/2018 against Venturino for failing to comply with an arbitration award/letter. He was suspended for one day, as his counsel was arranging installment payments; it later became obvious that the claimant had no intention of doing so. Venturino filed a motion to vacate, and FINRA lifted his suspension.

Robin Wahby

January 30, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Robin Michelle Wahby (CRD #2107629, aka, Robin Michelle Griswold) is a registered broker and investment advisor currently employed with NYLIFE Securities LLC (CRD #5167) of Jacksonville Beach, FL. She has been with NYLIFE since beginning in the industry in 1990.

FINRA-Permanently-Bars-Barry-Hartman-From-Securities-Activity-for-Alleged-“Selling-Away”-Activities-300x209 Wahby has one disclosure in her record, filed on 6/12/018. A client who invested in Future Income Payments, LLC (“FIP”) on Wahby’s recommendation, filed this customer dispute. This investment was supposed to provide the client with a guaranteed fixed amount and protect the client’s investments. However, the client alleges, she has received no income and her funds were no longer available. The client requested damages of $39,460.00 and the case was settled for $40,000.

Future Income Payments and other high yield investments which claim not to be correlated to stock market returns have been the subject of many arbitration claims. Investors generally do not appreciate the reasons why an investment may not appear on a monthly statement and some stockbrokers may be “selling away” from their firm.

Transamerica’s $97M Refund

January 30, 2019 | Silver Law Group

The SEC has ordered four entities of Transamerica to refund $97 million to investors after discovering that faulty investment models used for fund management didn’t work as it was purported.

The SEC Has Proposed New Regulations for Fiduciaries on silverlaw.com Aegon USA Investment Management, operating through Transamerica Asset Management, Transamerica Capital, Inc. and Transamerica Financial Advisors, discovered the model’s inconsistencies, but didn’t notify anyone when they stopped using it. This kept investors from understanding the risks and kept them from making more informed decisions about their investments.

The quantitative investment models were developed by an inexperienced junior analyst who had no experience in portfolio management. Once the company discovered the errors, the models were quietly taken out of circulation. Investors put billions of dollars into mutual funds and other accounts that used these models, which were sold as “model driven” and “model supported.” However, there was no hard evidence that these models actually worked, and no disclosure of risk was ever offered.

Scott Silver Discusses $102 Million Ponzi Scheme (with video)

January 30, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Back in June, we told you about five former brokers charged by the SEC when the agency shut down their Ponzi scheme worth $102 million.

What-Keeps-a-Ponzi-Scheme-Running-300x200 Scott Silver recently spoke with Jennifer Cefalu of WHEC News in Rochester, NY, where two of the suspects lived and the scheme originated. The scheme was run by Perry Santillo, Jr. and Chris Parris, with Santillo headlining.

Santillo, Parris and three others recruited their investors by word of mouth, after buying client lists from brokers. Ultimately, 637 people were defrauded, many in the Rochester area. The entities they represented were not registered with any federal agency like the SEC or FINRA, nor were any of them registered brokers or investment advisors.

Sebastian Wyczawski Subject To Two Disclosures Totaling $350K

January 29, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Sebastian Wyczawski (CRD #2835135) is a registered broker currently employed with Joseph Stone Capital, LLC (CRD #159744) of Holbrook, NY. His previous employers include Cape Securities Inc. (CRD #7072), also of Holbrook,

Bahram-Mirhashemi-Facing-Allegations-of-Elder-Financial-Fraud-300x200 Liberty Partners Financial Services, LLC (CRD #130390) of Mount Pleasant, SC, and Milestone Financial Services, Inc. (CRD #43295) of Bohemia, NY. His first employer, Seaboard Securities, Inc. (CRD #755) of Florham Park, NJ, was expelled by FINRA in 2011. He has been in the industry since 1998.

Wyczawski has a total of three disclosures, all customer disputes. The most recent was filed on 7/18/2018, alleging “fraud; negligent misrepresentation; breach of fiduciary duty and breach of the covenants of good faith and fair dealing; negligent supervision; breach of conduct; Section 20 violations.” This customer is requesting damages in the amount of $100,000.00.

Broker Roy Failla Subject of $1.5M Dispute

January 28, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Roy Joseph Failla (CRD #2786551) is a registered broker who is currently employed with First Standard Financial Company LLC (CRD #168340) of Red Bank, NJ. His previous employers include Alexander Capital, L.P. (CRD #40077), Brookstone Securities, INC. (CRD #13366, expelled by FINRA on 10/09/2012) and J.P. Turner & Company, L.L.C. (CRD #43177), all of Staten Island, NY. He has been in the industry since 1998.

A customer dispute filed on 5/29/2018 alleges that Failla engaged in “unauthorized trading and unsuitable investments,” and requests damages of $1,500,000. Failla denies the allegations.

Two of Failla’s previous disputes were filed during Failla’s tenure at Brookstone Securities. The first, filed on 2/19/2010, alleged “excessive and unauthorized trading, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, misrepresentation and unsuitability.” This customer requested damages of $299,817.48, and the case settled for $75,000. The second case, filed on 5/25/2010, alleged “churning, unsuitable trades and misrepresentation.” The client requested damages of $417,000.00, and the case was settled for $40,000.

FINRA Suspends, Fines Broker Ian Greenblatt For Selling Away

January 28, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Ian Greenblatt (CRD #2276966, aka “Eric Green”) is a registered broker currently employed with Capitol Securities Management, Inc. (CRD #14169) of Melville, NY. His previous employers include Capitol Securities & Associates, Inc. (CRD #7278), Westrock Advisors, Inc. (CRD #114338, expelled by FINRA on 1/18/2011), both of Melville, NY and Weatherly Securities Corporation (CRD #11081), of New York, NY. He has been in the industry since 1992.

FINRA-Permanently-Bars-Barry-Hartman-From-Securities-Activity-for-Alleged-“Selling-Away”-Activities-300x209 FINRA recently suspended Greenblatt for 30 days after he attempted to settle a customer complaint away from the firm in March 2016. After two of his customers complained about the firm and the loss of $170,000 from their brokerage account, he failed to discuss this complaint with his firm. Greenblatt visited these customers and gave them $4,000 in cash and a check for $46,000 to their son, who is not a firm customer nor one of Greenblatt’s.

During the meeting, they allegedly discussed re-investing their funds to try and recover the losses they suffered with the firm by depositing the money with CSMI’s clearing firm. Unfortunately, Greenblatt was not able to recover their losses, and the customers filed for arbitration against Greenblatt in August of 2017.

Broker Stephen Williams Subject Of 7 Customer Disputes

January 25, 2019 | Silver Law Group

Stephen Joe Williams (CRD #2395948) is a registered broker and investment advisor currently employed by NEXT FINANCIAL GROUP, INC. (CRD #46214) of Madison, AL, since 2007. His previous employers are Securities Service Network, Inc. (CRD #13318) of Huntsville, AL, Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. (CRD #6694) of St. Petersburg, FL, and Edward Jones (CRD #250) of St. Louis, MO. He has been in the industry since 1994.

Are-or-Were-Unsuitable-Non-Traded-REITs-in-Your-Portfolio-300x224 Williams’ most current customer dispute is pending, and was filed on 2/26/2018. The case centers on allegations that during June of 2008, Williams recommended non-traded REITS (real estate investment trusts) and didn’t disclose the nature and risks of these kinds of private securities. The customer is requesting damages of $350,000.

On 2/2/2018, another customer’s attorney filed a similar allegation with a 2008 time frame. Williams allegedly solicited the client to invest $50,000 in UDF III without informing him of the inherent risks of this illiquid investment. Although the customer requested remediation of $50,000, the dispute was denied.