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Articles Tagged with Allegations of Churning

Melvin Case

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.

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Shadi T Barakat

CRD#5031281

Silver Law Group is investigating former New York, New York-based AEGIS Capital Corp broker Shadi T. Barakat after multiple clients filed FINRA complaints alleging excessive trading and churning. This complaint was settled in 2015 for $360,000.

FINRA Permanently Bars NY Broker Rasheed Adams After Allegations of Churning on silverlaw.com

Excessive trading leads to $57K in commissions and $37K in losses for investors, among other allegations

In August of 2015, FINRA permanently banned New York financial advisor Rasheed “Richard” Adams from associating or engaging with any firm associated with FINRA after allegations of excessive trading were filed. Adams also failed to provide required FINRA information and paperwork related to these allegations and his investment activity. Adams allegedly gained a commission of approximately $57,000, while his customers lost approximately $37,000.

According to the FINRA complaint, Mr. Adams worked with Caldwell International Securities between 2011 and 2015, which is when these churning activities were alleged to have occurred. Previously, he was registered with PHD Capital (2010-2011) and E1 Asset Management Inc. (2002-2010). He is not currently registered with any FINRA member firm.

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