The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended broker Richard Scott Shelley from the securities industry for one month and ordered him to pay a $5,000 fine. FINRA sanctioned Mr. Shelley because he solicited a client to purchase $29,500 worth of Future Income Payments, LLC. This blog has previously written…
Numerous stockbrokers at David Lerner Associates Inc. (“David Lerner Associates”) recommended risky and speculative Puerto Rico municipal bonds to customers. An investor may be able to recover financial losses if the recommendation was not suitable for the customer or if David Lerner misrepresented or omitted material facts about the bonds…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Department of Enforcement has filed a disciplinary proceeding complaint against broker Megurditch Patatian (aka Mike Patatian) alleging that, while associated with Western International Securities, Inc., Mr. Patatian engaged in conduct in violation of FINRA rules, including: making 81 unsuitable recommendations to purchase over $7.8 million…
**Update: 4/19/21** In March 2021 another customer filed a securities arbitration complaint against Daniel Todd Lerner and David Lerner Associates, Inc. The customer has alleged over $515,000 in damages as a result of unsuitable investment recommendations related to Energy 11 and an unspecific mutual fund (possibly, SOAEX). The complaint alleged…
Professional basketball players Chandler Parsons and Courtney Lee, who have both played in the National Basketball Association, have reportedly filed a $5 million securities arbitration complaint against Morgan Stanley. According to broker Darryl Cohen’s CRD report, the complaint alleges that Morgan Stanley made payments from the players’ accounts without prior…
On behalf of a client, securities arbitration law firm Iorio Altamirano LLP has filed an arbitration claim through FINRA Dispute Resolution Services against David Lerner Associates Inc. (“David Lerner”). The claim alleges that President and CEO Martin Walcoe and David Lerner unsuitably recommended that the customer purchase and hold Puerto…
Here is how you can file a claim to recover losses suffered from trading restrictions placed on GameStop, AMC, Blackberry, Nokia, and other stocks. On February 12, 2021, in a letter addressed to Senator Elizabeth Warren, Robinhood Financial, LLC confirmed twenty-four (24) pending securities arbitrations. Robinhood’s letter was written in…
This post is the first in a series of investigative blog posts that spotlight modern-day boiler rooms that operate under the guise of a reputable brokerage firm. Many of the broker-dealers featured in this series still use boiler room tactics such as cold-calling customers and high pressure or aggressive sales…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended financial advisor Charles Bonilla from the securities industry for five months, fined him $5,000, and ordered him to disgorge $22,417 in commissions. FINRA suspended Mr. Bonilla for recommending energy-sector securities to customers without having a reasonable basis to believe those investments were…
Lon Charles Faccini Jr. is a stockbroker with Arive Capital Markets LLC (“Arive Capital Markets”) in Brooklyn, NY, with a history of customer complaints and associations with disreputable broker-dealers. Mr. Faccini has been the subject of seven customer complaints, which include two pending disputes. The pending disputes are securities arbitration…