Securities Arbitration Lawyers Blog

SEC and U.S. Attorney Charge Miami Investment Advisor in Ponzi Scheme Targeting Retired Public Sector Employees

June 11, 2015 | Silver Law Group

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida have each charged Miami-based investment advisor Phil Donnahue Williamson for his alleged role in a $2,000,000 Ponzi scheme that defrauded hundreds of retired public sector workers, including school teachers and law enforcement agents.

According to the SEC and U.S. Attorney’s Office, Williamson operated his scheme through two businesses — Sterling Investment Fund LLC and Sterling Financial Partners — that allegedly invested in distressed properties in Florida and Georgia. Between 2007 and 2014, Williamson advised the investors that they would be placing their retirement savings in the distressed properties; and he was able to raise more than $2 million. Some of the investors were former clients of Williamson’s, some were referred by a former co-worker of his, and some approached him after he spoke at financial seminars hosted by churches. The investors allegedly wanted to safely invest their funds and keep those funds liquid, which Williamson purportedly said they could do in his “no-risk” investment strategy that would provide them yearly returns of 8 to 12 percent.

As detailed in the SEC’s lawsuit, the investors all agreed to pay Sterling a $25,000 membership subscription and signed documents allowing a trust company to rollover their retirement accounts. Without realizing it, though, the investors also authorized Williamson to deduct advisory fees; and he allegedly utilized that mechanism to siphon nearly $750,000 in fees from the investors. According to reports, Williamson used the stolen funds to pay for his children’s school tuition, his mortgage, car payments, and to fund his other businesses along with making supposed distribution returns to investors.

Broker Charles D. Johnson Permanently Barred by FINRA

June 9, 2015 | Silver Law Group

His career in securities ends with failure to respond to FINRA request

After only six years in the securities industry, broker Charles Damien Johnson has been permanently barred from acting as a broker or otherwise associating with firms that sell securities to the public. According to the FINRA BrokerCheck website, Johnson failed to respond to a FINRA request for information and was sent a notice of suspension in August of 2014. Since he then failed to request termination of his suspension within three months of the date of notice of his suspension, he was automatically barred from association with any FINRA member in any capacity as of November 10, 2014.

During his career in the industry, Johnson nonetheless worked for at least 10 investment firms in the New York state area. His dates of employment and employers are listed below:

Employment Dates	Employer Name	Employer Location
01/2013 – Present	Laidlaw & Co (UK) Ltd	Melville, NY
06/2012 – 12/2012	Global Arena Capital Corp	New York, NY
07/2010 – 06/2012	National Securities Corp	Huntington, NY
07/2009 – 07/2010	New Castle Financial Services, LLC	Melville, NY
09/2008 – 07/2009	Morgan Wilshire Securities, Inc.	Westbury, NY
10/2007 – 09/2008	National Securities Corp	Huntington, NY
07/2007 – 10/2007	EKN Financial Services, Inc.National Securities Corp	Woodbury, NY
11/2006 – 02/2007	Morgan Wilshire	Woodbury, NY
11/2006 – 02/2007	SW Bach & Co	Port Washington, NY
01/1997 – 10/2006	Argo Financial	Melville, NY

While moving from firm to firm seems to have been voluntary, Johnson’s employment with Global Arena Capital Corp was terminated on December 12, 2012 for “circumvention of firm policy” according to the FINRA BrokerCheck website.

Why are we telling you all of this?

To let you know that, if you’re an investor who suffered financial losses at the hands of Charles D. Johnson, or any other financial advisor, you may be eligible to recover your losses through securities arbitration. The key is to turn to the right securities fraud attorney with proven expertise in recovering lost funds.

At Silver Law Group you’ll find an experienced securities attorney committed to help recover investment losses due to stockbroker misconduct. With lawyers admitted to practice in New York and Florida – representing investors nationwide – you can expect a complimentary consultation and a case handled on a contingent fee basis, meaning you don’t pay legal fees unless Silver Law Group is successful. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation and discuss your legal rights.

New York Broker Raymond Thomas Clark Permanently Barred by FINRA

June 9, 2015 | Silver Law Group

Broker Raymond Thomas Clark (CRD# 3120696) was permanently barred by FINRA for failing to appear for FINRA-requested on-the-record testimony related to an investigation into whether he executed excessive and/or unauthorized transactions in customer accounts, exercised discretion without authorization, and accepted trade instructions from an individual who was not authorized to exercise trading authority in a customer account.

Clark first became a registered securities broker in 1998 and was employed by the following broker-dealers from 1998- 2014: Global Capital Markets, LLC (Melville, NY), Global Capital Securities Corp. (Englewood, CO), J.P. Turner and Co., LLC (Atlanta, GA), Bathgate Capital Partners LLC (Buffalo, NY), J.P. Turner and Co., LLC (Buffalo, NY), Paulson Investment Co., Inc. (Buffalo, NY), First Midwest Securities, Inc. (Buffalo, NY), and Dynasty Capital Partners, Inc. (Buffalo, NY).

In 2011 and 2014, Clark was suspended for using his personal email account to communicate with customers regarding business-related matters, in violation of FINRA rules and the firm’s procedures. Investors should be weary when their broker uses a personal email account to communicate with them. In many cases, the broker is doing so in order to circumvent FINRA rules and to hide illegal activities from his employer. This was the case with Clark, who by using his personal email account, bypassed the firm’s supervisory review of emails and caused the firm to fail to preserve required records, as well as not reporting a customer’s complaint concerning overcharging of commissions.

Homer Vining, Former J.P. Turner Broker Suspended by FINRA for Failure to Pay an Arbitration Award

June 9, 2015 | Silver Law Group

Homer Vining was suspended by FINRA for failing to pay an arbitration award in a dispute with his former employer, Ameriprise Advisor Services, Inc. Vining allegedly failed to repay a promissory note to Ameriprise upon termination of his employment in 2008. Vining worked at J.P. Turner & Company, LLC from 2009 through March 2015.

Silver Law Group represents investors in securities and investment fraud cases. Our lawyers are admitted to practice in New York and Florida and represent investors nationwide 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.

FINRA Fines LPL Financial LLC $11.7 Million for Failures to Supervise and Monitor Trades

June 9, 2015 | Silver Law Group

FINRA announced on May 6^th that it censured and fined LPL Financial LLC (“LPL”) $10 million for supervisory failures in a number of different complex investment areas, including the sales of non-traditional exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), certain variable annuity contracts, non-traded real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and other products, as well as its failure to monitor trades and deliver to customers more than 14 million trade confirmations. Moreover, FINRA ordered LPL to pay $1.7 million in restitution to certain customers who purchased non-traditional ETFs, and the firm may be fined additional compensation to ETF purchasers, pending a review by FINRA of its ETF systems and procedures.

With these sanctions, “FINRA reaffirms that there is little room in the industry for lax supervision and that it will not hesitate to order firms to review and correct substandard supervisory systems and controls,” stated Brad Bennett, Chief of Enforcement at FINRA.

FINRA stated that concerning non-traditional ETFs, LPL did not have a system in place to monitor the length of time that customers held these securities in their accounts, did not enforce its limits on the concentration of the products in customer accounts, and failed to make sure that its brokers were adequately trained on the risks of these products. Additionally, LPL permitted sales of variable annuities without disclosing surrender fees. Furthermore, LPL failed to supervise non-traded REITs by failing to identify accounts for volume sales charge discounts. FINRA determined that LPL’s systems to review trading activity in customer accounts were inundated by many deficiencies including failing to alert for certain high-risk activity.

FINRA Head: SEC Should Lead in Development of Fiduciary Standard

June 8, 2015 | Silver Law Group

Recently, the head of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) told a congressional panel that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) should take the lead in the development of a uniform fiduciary duty for broker-dealers and investment advisors. Currently, both the SEC and the Department Labor (DOL) are, independently, developing a uniform standard for stockbrokers and investment advisors.

Uniform Fiduciary Duty

Before the House of Representatives Financial Services subcommittee, Richard Ketchum, FINRA’s chairman and chief executive, stated that he supports the development of a standard that securities professionals act in the client’s best interest, regardless of whether they are a broker or investment advisor. Further, Ketchum stated that he believes that the SEC should be in charge of the development of this standard, while promising FINRA would provide assistance in this endeavor.

Pedro Molina’s Securities Industry Career Ends With FINRA Permanent Suspension

June 2, 2015 | Silver Law Group

Amid claims of unsuitable investment advice, Molina does not respond to requests for information

After not responding to a FINRA request for information, broker Pedro Molina is permanently suspended from the securities industry. According to the FINRA BrokerCheck website, Molina failed to request termination of his suspension from FINRA within three months of the date of his notice of suspension. Therefore, he is permanently barred from association with any FINRA member in any capacity.

While it might seem unusual for a broker not to respond to a FINRA request and allow a permanent suspension to occur, surprisingly, it is not uncommon. In the case of Pedro Molina, it follows a career during which customers’ alleged mismanagement of their investment funds and lack of production of documentation. In fact, in three of the customer complaints against him, customers alleged he gave misleading investment advice and made unsuitable investments in risky Puerto Rican funds. The combined alleged damages equal over $1.2 million dollars. In addition, Molina was “permitted to resign” from Kovack Securities, Inc. in February 2014 after admitting to having borrowed money from clients while with a previous employer.

Silver Law Group Files Securities Arbitration Case Against Dawson James

May 29, 2015 | Silver Law Group

The Silver Law Group has filed a securities arbitration claim before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) on behalf of a family and a family business from South America alleging, among other things, that Dawson James failed to properly supervise one of its registered representatives, permitted an unsuitable investment strategy to be utilized and permitted the family’s investment accounts to be excessively traded for the purposes of generating huge commissions for itself and its registered representatives while wiping out most of their customers’ investment capital in a very short period of time.

Excessive trading or “churning,” as it is known in the industry, is the act of a broker who excessively and needlessly engages in trading in a client’s account primarily to generate commissions for the broker on each trade without regard for the client’s financial well-being. Churning is an illegal and unethical practice that violates SEC rules and securities laws.

Dawson James Securities markets itself as a full service investment firm specializing in complex healthcare, biotechnology, technology, and clean-tech sectors. Headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, the firm has been in operation since 2002. Dawson James has been the subject of several regulatory investigations, some which resulted in disciplinary actions by regulators. For example, FINRA recently censured and fined Dawson James $75,000 for failing to provide adequate supervisory procedures. FINRA found that during the review period the firm failed to investigate numerous “red flags” relating to the activities of one registered representative. Dawson James also failed to enforce its written supervisory procedures which specified that all electronic correspondence is reviewed on a daily basis. The firm has also been the subject of several customer FINRA arbitration claims.

Brokers Suspended by FINRA in May 2015 for Failing to Comply with FINRA Award or Settlement Agreement

May 26, 2015 | Silver Law Group

According to FINRA Disciplinary actions for May 2015, 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
Jinesh Pravin Brahmbhatt	Success Trade Securities, Inc.
Jinesh Pravin Brahmbhatt	LPL Financial Corporation
Patrick Ryan Bray	Newbridge Securities Corporation
Patrick Ryan Bray	UBS Financial Services Inc.
Douglas Walter Campbell Jr.	Wedbush Securities Inc.
Douglas Walter Campbell Jr.	Brookstreet Securities Corporation
Andrew Joseph Donofrio	Garden State Securities, Inc.
Andrew Joseph Donofrio	Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC
Anthony Frank Giuliano III	EKN Financial Services, Inc.
Anthony Frank Giuliano III	John Thomas Financial
Greg James Hilliard	Toussaint Capital Partners, LLC
Greg James Hilliard	Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
Brendon John Lyden	Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
Brendon John Lyden	UBS Financial Services Inc.
Wilhelm Nash	UBS Financial Services Inc.
Wilhelm Nash	Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC
Alexander Walter Swanson

Silver Law Group represents investors in securities and investment fraud cases. Our lawyers are admitted to practice in New York and Florida and represent investors nationwide 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.

SEC and FINRA Holding Compliance Program for Broker-Dealers

May 20, 2015 | Silver Law Group

Later this summer the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry National Regulatory Authority (FINRA) will jointly hold a National Compliance Outreach Program for Broker-Dealers. This one-day program is designed for compliance, audit, and risk officers of broker-dealer firms and frequently highlights areas of concern to FINRA.

Details of the Program

The program was created with the intention that it will provide regulators and industry professionals an open forum for discussion related to compliance practices. In addition, the program helps to facilitate the exchanging of ideas related to effective and efficient compliance structures.