Securities Arbitration Lawyer Blog

Antonio Almeida, with Worden Capital Management LLC, Suspended by FINRA

Published on: January 7, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended Antonio Almeida from associating with any FINRA member in any capacity for three months. Mr. Almeida has been registered with Worden Capital Management LLC (“Worden Capital Management”) in Garden City, New York, since January 2020. Previously, from March 2014 through December 2017, he was registered with Aegis Capital Corp. in Melville, New York.

Separately, Iorio Altamirano LLP is currently investigating claims on behalf of Worden Capital Management customers after the firm was sanctioned more than $1.5 million by FINRA, including restitution, for making unsuitable recommendations and excessively trading customers’ accounts. A FINRA restitution order does not preclude investors from pursuing their own claims to seek restitution or other available remedies. Investors harmed by Worden Capital Management’s supervisory failures may have a claim against the firm. You can read more about it here.

If you have lost money with Worden Capital Management or Antonio Almeida, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential review of your account.

Jason Collichio, with Worden Capital Management LLC, Suspended by FINRA Over Supervisory Failures

Published on: January 4, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

FINRA has suspended Jason Collichio from associating with any FINRA member in any principal capacity for three months. Mr. Collichio has been registered with Worden Capital Management LLC (“WCM”) in Garden City, New York, since 2009. He has been registered as a principal with the firm since 2012. Mr. Collichio initially registered with FINRA in 2003.

Iorio Altamirano LLP is currently investigating claims on behalf of WCM customers after the firm was sanctioned more than $1.5 million by FINRA, including restitution, for making unsuitable recommendations and excessively trading customers’ accounts. A FINRA restitution order does not preclude investors from pursuing their own claims to seek restitution or other available remedies. Investors harmed by WCM’s supervisory failures may have a claim against the firm. You can read more about it here.

If you have lost money with WCM, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential review of your account.

New Year’s Resolutions for Investors in 2021

Published on: December 31, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

Investing your money is a great way to grow your wealth, save for retirement, and reach your financial goals. If you invest in the appropriate products, you can also receive income from investments, build on-pre-tax dollars, or reduce taxable income.

If you do not invest, you miss out on opportunities to increase your wealth. However, all investments carry risk, and when you invest, you have the potential to lose money.

There are many different types of investments. Some common types of investments include stocks, bonds, certificates of deposit, mutual funds, money market funds, exchange-traded funds, and annuities. There are also more complex investment vehicles, such as real estate investment trusts (REITs), unit investment trusts (UITs), hedge funds, commodities, and private placements.

Investor Alert: Iorio Altamirano LLP Investigates Worden Capital Management LLC Over Excessive Trading

Published on: December 31, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

Iorio Altamirano LLP is investigating claims on behalf of Worden Capital Management LLC (“WCM”) customers after the firm was sanctioned more than $1.5 million by FINRA for making unsuitable recommendations and excessively trading customers’ accounts. If you have lost money with WCM, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential evaluation of your account.

WCM and FINRA entered into a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent (“AWC”) over allegations that between January 2015 and October 2019, WCM and its owner and CEO, Jaime Worden, violated FINRA rules. Specifically, that WCM and Mr. Worden:

Failed to establish, maintain, and enforce a supervisory system, including written supervisory procedures (WSPs), reasonably designed to achieve compliance with FINRA’s suitability rule as it pertains to excessive trading.

Investor Alert: Iorio Altamirano LLP Investigates Wells Fargo Over Variable Annuity Switches

Published on: December 29, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

Iorio Altamirano LLP is investigating claims on behalf of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC and Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, LLC customers (together “Wells Fargo” or the “Firm”) who received recommendations to switch from variable annuities to investment company products. If you have lost money with Wells Fargo, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential evaluation of your account.

Wells Fargo and FINRA entered into a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent (“AWC”) on September 2, 2020, over allegations that between January 2011 and August 2016, Wells Fargo violated FINRA rules. Specifically, that Wells Fargo:

Failed to establish and maintain a supervisory system, and failed to enforce written supervisory procedures (“WSPs”), that were reasonably designed to achieve compliance with FINRA’s suitability rule as it pertains to switches from variable annuities to investment company products (i.e., mutual funds, Unit Investment Trusts (UITs), etc.).

Former J.P. Morgan Securities and Edward Jones Broker, Paul Zakhary, Suspended for Unsuitable Annuity Switch Recommendations – Florida

Published on: December 28, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

FINRA has suspended financial advisor Paul Zakhary (CRD No. 6399894) from the securities industry for three months and fined him $5,000.

FINRA alleged that between January and August 2018, while employed by J.P. Morgan Securities LLC in The Villages, Florida, Mr. Zakhary made unsuitable recommendations to three customers to sell variable annuities and replace them with fixed annuities, in violation of FINRA Rules 2111 and 2010.

Paul Zakhary was a financial advisor at J.P. Morgan Securities LLC from October 2017 until August 2019., working out of the firm’s branch office in Ocala, Florida. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC terminated Mr. Zakhary’s employment for violating the firm’s annuity switch policy related to annuity surrenders and managed brokerage transactions.

Jaime I. Sanchez Rivera, former First Southern, LLC Financial Advisor in Puerto Rico, Suspended by FINRA – Guaynabo, Puerto Rico

Published on: December 28, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

FINRA has suspended financial advisor Jamie I. Sanchez Rivera (CRD #6013022) from the securities industry for five months and fined him $10,000. Jamie I. Sanchez Rivera was a stockbroker at First Southern, LLC in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, from April 2017 until May 2020.

First Southern, LLC fired Mr. Sanchez Rivera in May 2020, alleging the following:

Sanchez Rivera failed to immediately advise the firm of a customer’s complaint regarding an investment recommendation that he made, in violation of firm policy.

Top 15 Types of Securities Leading to Customer Disputes in 2020

Published on: December 27, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

When an investor suffers harm, including investment losses, due to misconduct by a financial advisor or broker-dealer, the investor can file a securities arbitration claim against their financial advisor and/or broker-dealer in an effort to be compensated. The case will be presented and defended in an arbitration proceeding to a panel of arbitrators instead of a court of law in front of a judge and jury.

Arbitration is the primary forum for resolving disputes between investors and brokerage firms or financial advisors because the parties have contractually agreed to use arbitration as an alternative dispute resolution process. When an investor opens an account with a broker-dealer, the investor is required to sign an array of account opening documents. These account opening documents regularly include an arbitration clause, which requires that arbitration be used as an alternative to litigation. This requirement is often a contractually binding obligation for both parties. As a result, disputes between investors and financial advisors or brokerage firms are resolved in arbitration as an alternative to court.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is authorized by Congress to regulate the financial services industry and operates the largest arbitration forum for securities disputes. Most securities arbitrations take place using FINRA’s Dispute Resolution Services’ arbitration forum because, as FINRA members, financial advisors and brokerage firms are required to arbitrate customer complaints upon the filing of a claim through FINRA.

Iorio Altamirano LLP 2020 Highlights

Published on: December 24, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

Dear Clients, Colleagues, and Friends:

We wish you the very best for a joy-filled holiday season and health in the new year.

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As this trying year ends, we wanted to take a moment to thank you for your support, encouragement, and trust. We couldn’t have launched our securities arbitration law firm without you. After helping investors recover investment losses in over 1,000 cases over the past decade, we decided to open our own law practice, Iorio Altamirano LLP, with one key goal in mind: to do things differently, better. To guide this journey, we committed to our core values of grit, integrity, and excellence. We put these traits to use with the belief that every client deserves to be represented zealously and ethically and that every colleague, opposing party, and client deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.

UBS Ordered to Pay $90,000 to Yield Enhancement Strategy Customer

Published on: December 23, 2020 | by Iorio Altamirano

On December 22, 2020, a FINRA Dispute Resolution Services arbitration panel in Boca Raton, Florida, ordered UBS Financial Services, Inc. to pay a customer $89,675 in compensatory damages. After considering the pleadings, the testimony and evidence presented at the hearing, the arbitration panel concluded that the UBS Yield Enhancement Strategy (“YES”) was not suitable for the investor, Gerald S. Backman, a retired partner at corporate law firm Weil Gotshal & Manges.

Many UBS customers, including wealthy and sophisticated investors, who invested in UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy have filed lawsuits against UBS in the form of FINRA arbitrations to recover financial losses. The customers have claimed that the strategy was not suitable for them and that UBS materially misrepresented and omitted the product’s risks.

Investors who have suffered investment losses due to UBS’s Yield Enhancement Strategy should contact experienced securities arbitration attorneys at Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential case evaluation. Partner August Iorio, who has been investigating YES for nearly two years, can be reached at august@ia-law.com or toll-free at (855) 430-4010.

Securities Arbitration Lawyers Blog