A National Securities Arbitration & Investment Fraud Law Firm

$70 MILLION Recovery for Investment Fraud
$44 MILLION Recovery for Ponzi Scheme Victims
$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
American Association for Jusice
Florida Legal Elite 2011
Legal Leaders
5th Annual Most Effective Lawyers 2009
Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum
Super-Lawyers
SFLG
Top 100
Public Justice

James Simpson (James Earl Simpson CRD# 424828) is a former registered broker and investment adviser whose last known employer was Equitable Advisors, LLC (CRD#:6627) of Toledo, OH. His previous employer was The Equitable Life Assurance Society Of The United States (CRD#:4039) of New York, NY. He has been in the industry since 1972.  in Simpson's nearly 50-year career, he has a total of five disclosures, three of which are customer disputes. The most recent was filed on 9/24/2021, in which the client alleged misappropriations of funds for an investment sold outside of the firm. This is known as “selling away,” since the product being sold is not part of the firm's offerings. At this writing, the claim is currently listed as pending.  A previous disclosure filed on August 6, 2021, also still pending, contains allegations that Simpson sold her an unsuitable variable annuity and misinformed her about a mutual fund investment. No specified damages are listed in either one of these claims.James Simpson (James Earl Simpson CRD# 424828) is a former registered broker and investment adviser whose last known employer was Equitable Advisors, LLC (CRD#:6627) of Toledo, OH. His previous employer was The Equitable Life Assurance Society Of The United States (CRD#:4039) of New York, NY. He has been in the industry since 1972. Continue reading ›

Caroline Mohan, aka, Caroline Reyes (CRD:# 2429577) is a former registered broker and investment advisor. Her last known employer was LPL Financial LLC (CRD#:6413) of West Palm Beach, FL. She was previously employed as a broker with Invest Financial Corporation (CRD#:12984) of Palm Beach Gardens and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (CRD#:7691) of Lake Worth, FL. She has been in the industry since 2011.  Mohan resigned from LPL Financial while under internal review for possible involvement with an outside business activity that she failed to disclose to the firm. Additionally, she was also alleged to have participated in private securities transactions.  On March 11th, 2021, LPL Financial filed a uniform termination notice for securities industries registration, or a Form U5, stating that Mohan voluntarily resigned during an internal review. As a result, FINRA initiated an investigation, and requested on-the-record testimony from her. Mohan declined to provide this information, in violation of FINRA policies.  In response for Mohan’s refusal to provide on the record testimony, FINRA issued a sanction barring Mohan from association with any FINRA member in all capacities. Mohan signed a letter of Acceptance Waiver And Consent (AWC) letter on November 17th, 2021. The bar became went into effect on November 22nd, 2021.  Mohan has no other disclosures in her CRD.Caroline Mohan, aka, Caroline Reyes (CRD# 2429577) is a former registered broker and investment advisor. Her last known employer was LPL Financial LLC (CRD#:6413) of West Palm Beach, FL. She was previously employed as a broker with Invest Financial Corporation (CRD#:12984) of Palm Beach Gardens and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (CRD#:7691) of Lake Worth, FL. She has been in the industry since 2011. Continue reading ›

Michael Beebe (Michael Douglas Beebe, CRD# 2231851) is a former broker and investment advisor whose most recent employment was with LPL Financial LLC (CRD# 6413) of Webster, NY. His previous employers include Nationwide Securities, LLC (CRD# 11173) of Elbridge, NY, 1717 Capital Management Company (CRD# 4082) and MML Investors Services, Inc. (CRD# 10409) of Rochester, NY.  He has 27 years in the industry, beginning in 1992.  A customer dispute filed on 5/21/2021 alleged that a promissory note investment Beebe recommended had a conflict of interest. The customer believed that the investment was a scam, was not in her best interests, and that it was from a company that Beebe was also personally involved with. The claim was settled for the $50,000 in damages that the customer requested.  This dispute led to LPL Financial’s dismissal of Beebe on 9/21/2021 for allegations that he, “participated in private securities transaction without prior disclosure to, or approval from Firm.”  These dealings are also known as “outside business activities,” or OBA. Most broker-dealers require written permission for their brokers to participate in most types of work activities outside of their firm employment.Michael Beebe (Michael Douglas Beebe, CRD# 2231851) is a former broker and investment advisor whose most recent employment was with LPL Financial LLC (CRD# 6413) of Webster, NY. His previous employers include Nationwide Securities, LLC (CRD# 11173) of Elbridge, NY, 1717 Capital Management Company (CRD# 4082) and MML Investors Services, Inc. (CRD# 10409) of Rochester, NY. He has 27 years in the industry, beginning in 1992. Continue reading ›

Jesus Rodriguez (CRD#: 4888685) is a former broker and investment advisor whose last known employer was Morgan Stanley (CRD#:149777) of El Paso, Texas. His former employers are Citigroup Global Markets Inc. (CRD#:7059) and    Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (CRD#:7691), also of El Paso.  He has been in the industry since 2005.  Rodriguez has a total of nine disclosures, all from 2021. The earliest, filed on 7/15/2021, alleges that Rodriguez used a customer’s credit line for his own personal benefit. This claim is currently pending, and requests damages of $61,431.00. He voluntarily resigned from Morgan Stanley on 8/6/2021 when the allegations came to light.  Two customer disputes filed on 8/23/2021 have nearly identical allegations of improper withdrawals (one from 2017 through 2020). These two disputes were settled for $376,532.96 and $30,470.00, respectively.Jesus Rodriguez (CRD# 4888685) is a former broker and investment advisor whose last known employer was Morgan Stanley (CRD#:149777) of El Paso, Texas. His former employers are Citigroup Global Markets Inc. (CRD# 7059) and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated (CRD# 7691), also of El Paso. He has been in the industry since 2005. Continue reading ›

Broker-dealer Joseph Stone Capital (CRD# 159744/SEC# 8-69014), based in Mineola, NY, has recently been fined by FINRA for allowing eight of its brokers to engage in excessive trading in their customers’ accounts. This practice is known as “churning,” and it always costs a customer money.  From January 2015 to June 2020, Joseph Stone Capital and eight of its brokers engaged in excessive trading in several customer accounts and made considerable commissions for themselves and the firm. This caused the customers to over-pay and never see a return on their investments.  FINRA made the announcement on September 8, 2022, and levied a fine of $1.04 million against the firm. The firm also failed to create adequate Written Supervisory Procedures (WSPS) that complied with FINRA Rule 2111.Broker-dealer Joseph Stone Capital (CRD# 159744/SEC# 8-69014), based in Mineola, NY, has recently been fined by FINRA for allowing eight of its brokers to engage in excessive trading in their customers’ accounts. This practice is known as “churning,” and it always costs a customer money. Continue reading ›

You’ve probably seen this statement in fine print on many investment-related documents and websites:  “Past performance does not necessarily predict future results.”  And it means exactly that—just because something performed well previously does not mean that it will perform that well in the future. That’s the nature of all investments.  Because investments and investment accounts are highly complex, it’s vital to understand not only the investment, but how it’s being presented and in what context. You must understand the context of the performance claim before considering investing or working with a particular broker dealer. Companies are required to provide detailed financial information which can reasonably be relied on by investors.  Unfortunately, to frequently, companies are misreporting their financials or prior success to bolster its performance or stock price.You’ve probably seen this statement in fine print on many investment-related documents and websites:

“Past performance does not necessarily predict future results.”

And it means exactly that—just because something performed well previously does not mean that it will perform that well in the future. That’s the nature of all investments. Continue reading ›

According to FINRA Disciplinary actions for September 2022, the following individuals were suspended from FINRA and cannot currently work for a FINRA brokerage firm for failing to provide FINRA with information it requested or to keep information current with FINRA pursuant to FINRA rules. However, these individuals remain bound by the securities arbitration agreement to arbitrate any disputes between themselves and their former customers:

NAME FORMER EMPLOYERS
  Chad Barancyk   Great Point Capital LLC
  First Allied Securities, Inc.
  Aren Blackwood
  Richard Carman   Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC
  LPL Financial LLC
  Austin Dutton Jr.   American Trust Investments Services, Inc.
  Primex
  Beth Landwehr   J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
  Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.
  Ebony Parks   LPL Financial LLC
  Wells Fargo Clearing Services, Inc.
  Firasat Siddiqui   Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC
  Alexandra Smith   J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
  Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated

Continue reading ›

According to FINRA Disciplinary actions for September 2022, 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
  Dwayne Bullen   Primary Capital LLC
  Joseph Stone Capital, LLC
  James Flynn   IFS Securities
  Voya Financial Advisors, Inc.
  David Melilli   Cambridge Investment Research, Inc.
  SagePoint Financial, Inc.
  Joseph Pratt   Stifel Nicolaus & Co Inc
  Wells Fargo Advisors LLC
  Joseph Valdini   Aegis Capital Corp.
  Worden Capital Management LLC
  Steven Wyatt   Morgan Stanley Smith Barney
  Morgan Stanley & Co, Incorporated

Continue reading ›

According to FINRA Disciplinary actions for September 2022, the following individuals were barred from FINRA and cannot currently work for a FINRA brokerage firm for failing to provide FINRA with information it requested or to keep information current with FINRA pursuant to FINRA rules:

NAME FORMER EMPLOYERS
  Robin Auguste   J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
  Michael Beebe   LPL Financial LLC
  Nationwide Securities, LLC
  LeRoy Cantley
  Salvatore Carollo   Allstate Financial Services, LLC
  Kevin Garasky   Pruco Securities, LLC
  Bankers Life Securities, Inc.
  Dustin Goss   Park Avenue Securities LLC
  Edward Jones
  Yang Liang   NYLIFE Securities LLC
  James Merrill   Independent Financial Group, LLC
  LPL Financial Corporation
  William Nicoloff Jr.   Boustead Securities, LLC
  StoneCreek Capital Partners
  Darrell Roberts   Spire Securities, LLC
  Western International Securities, Inc.
  Isaac Stewart   Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated
  Gregory Williams   Presidential Brokerage, Inc.
  Forta Financial Group, Inc.

Continue reading ›

Silver Law Group filed a FINRA arbitration claim on behalf of an investor who suffered losses after her financial adviser convinced her to loan him money, and then failed to repay it. The financial adviser developed a position of trust and confidence with Silver Law Group’s client, then convinced her that he had a unique investment opportunity which would make large profits for both of them. The adviser never disclosed that this is an improper practice in the brokerage industry or that his broker-dealer did not allow brokers to borrow money from customers. However, the customer alleges that the firm failed to properly supervise the financial advisor and engaged in elder financial fraud.Silver Law Group filed a FINRA arbitration claim on behalf of an investor who suffered losses after her financial adviser convinced her to loan him money, and then failed to repay it. The financial adviser developed a position of trust and confidence with Silver Law Group’s client, then convinced her that he had a unique investment opportunity which would make large profits for both of them. The adviser never disclosed that this is an improper practice in the brokerage industry or that his broker-dealer did not allow brokers to borrow money from customers. However, the customer alleges that the firm failed to properly supervise the financial advisor and engaged in elder financial fraud. Continue reading ›

Contact Information