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Lake Forest, Illinois Financial Advisor Victor A. Rigoni, III, Formerly of Summit Brokerage Services, Inc., Suspended by FINRA

Published on: March 29, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has suspended stockbroker Victor A. Rigoni, III from the securities industry for three months. FINRA accepted an Offer of Settlement submitted by Mr. Rigoni after FINRA’s Department of Enforcement filed a disciplinary complaint against Mr. Rigoni in August 2020. The complaint alleged that from August 2012 through March 2019, Mr. Rigoni willfully failed to timely amend his Uniform Application for Securities Industry Registration or Transfer (Form U4) to disclose six unsatisfied federal and state tax liens totaling $164,521. On average, Mr. Rigoni disclosed his tax liens almost three-and-a-half years late. Mr. Rigoni also never disclosed a state tax lien of $11,304.

Mr. Rigoni has been associated with the following broker-dealers:

Cetera Advisor Networks LLC in Lake Forest, Illinois, from September 2019 to August 2020.

Broker, Jeremy Johnson, Formerly of Torch Securities, LLC, BARRED by FINRA – Murrieta, CA

Published on: March 29, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has barred broker Jeremy Taylor Johnson from the securities industry. FINRA expelled Mr. Johnson from the brokerage industry for refusing to cooperate with a FINRA investigation into the suitability and potential misrepresentations and omissions related to Johnson’s offer and sale of two securities offerings while associated with Torch Securities, LLC.

Mr. Johnson entered the securities industry in 2019 when he associated with Torch Securities, LLC (“Torch Securities”) and registered with FINRA as a Private Securities Offerings. His employment ended in April 2021.

Securities and Exchange Commission Settlement

Broker Chad Mackland, Who Is Facing Felony Criminal Charges, BARRED by FINRA

Published on: March 23, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has barred broker Chad Mackland from the securities industry. Mr. Mackland was barred from the brokerage industry for refusing to cooperate with a FINRA investigation into alleged theft and fraudulent sales practices.

According to his BrokerCheck report, Mr. Mackland is facing four felony charges in the District Court of Pottawattamie County in Iowa. He is accused of committing fraudulent sales practices and theft by deception.

Mr. Mackland was associated with Lion Street Financial, LLC in Council Bluff, Iowa, from December 2018 to February 2020.

UBS Ordered to Pay $1 million to Yield Enhancement Strategy (YES) Customers

Published on: March 17, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

On March 5, 2021, a FINRA Dispute Resolution Services arbitration panel in Denver, Colorado, ordered UBS Financial Services, Inc. (“UBS”) to pay customers over $1 million in compensatory damages. The claims, which include breach of duty, violations of the Nebraska Securities Act, and professional negligence arising out of broker Jason Dworak’s recommendations concerning the UBS Yield Enhancement Strategy (“YES”). The arbitration panel also awarded prejudgment interest to the customers.

The $1 million judgment is the second arbitration award against UBS within a matter of months. In December 2020, a FINRA arbitration panel in Boca Raton, Florida, awarded a customer nearly $90,000. The Florida arbitration panel concluded that the UBS YES was not suitable for the investor, Gerald S. Backman, a retired partner at corporate law firm Weil Gotshal & Manges.

UBS has faced numerous lawsuits from customers in the form of FINRA securities arbitrations related to YES, a complex managed options strategy that UBS marketed as safe and market-neutral. The customers have claimed that the strategy was not suitable for them and that UBS materially misrepresented and omitted the risks of the strategy.

Investigative Report: Iorio Altamirano LLP Investigation into Joseph Stone Capital L.L.C. Reveals Troubling Pasts for Owners, Executives, and Brokers

Published on: March 16, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

This post is part of 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 tactics. Other brokerage firms have a propensity for broker misconduct, such as excessive trading, churning, unauthorized trades, and misrepresentation. Iorio Altamirano LLP is a securities arbitration law firm based in New York City. We represent investors nationwide who have suffered investment losses due to wrongful conduct by financial advisors and brokerage firms. We are investor advocates.

Other Investigative Blog Posts:

Arive Capital Markets, LLC

Broker Megurditch Mike Patatian, Formerly of Western International Securities, Inc. Facing Disciplinary Charges by FINRA for Recommending Unsuitable Illiquid REITs to 59 Customers, Including 21 Elderly Customers – Westlake Village, California

Published on: March 1, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

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 in non-traded Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) to 59 customers, including 21 senior investors;
recommending illiquid non-traded REIT to six customers that also needed liquidity;

Financial Advisors in Morgan Stanley’s Global Sports and Entertainment Group Have Been the Subject of Six Customer Disputes Over the Past Year

Published on: February 25, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

Morgan Stanley’s Global Sports and Entertainment Group is a division of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management that targets professional athletes and entertainers. The group consists of approximately 168 financial advisors across the country that hold the designation “Global Sports and Entertainment Directors.” Morgan Stanley promotes that these advisors are uniquely qualified to address the needs of actors, directors, writers, producers, musicians, songwriters, professional athletes, coaches, and sport team owners. Over the past year, these brokers have received six customer complaints, according to public records.

If you or a client were a customer of Morgan Stanley’s Global Sports and Entertainment Group and either sustained financial losses or suspect that Morgan Stanley did not have your best interest in mind when recommending investments or transactions, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential evaluation of your account.

Financial Advisor Darryl Cohen (CRD No. 2786613) – Westlake Village, CA

Former NBA Players Chandler Parsons and Courtney Lee Reportedly File a $5 Million Securities Arbitration Claim Against Morgan Stanley and Broker Darryl Cohen

Published on: February 24, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

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 approval. The complaint also alleges that Mr. Cohen recommended the use of a “liquidity access line” for real estate and life insurance policies for which they “now claim they hold no interest.”

Parsons and Lee were not the first professional athlete to file a claim against Morgan Stanley arising out of broker Darryl Cohen’s conduct. Former Major League Baseball outfielder Nyjer Morgan filed a securities arbitration complaint against Morgan Stanley in May 2020. The complaint alleged that Mr. Cohen unsuitably recommended using a liquidity access line” to loan funds to outside business entities.

If you have lost money with broker Darryl Cohen or Morgan Stanley, contact New York securities arbitration lawyers Iorio Altamirano LLP for a free and confidential evaluation of your account.

Iorio Altamirano LLP Files Securities Arbitration Claim Against David Lerner Associates, Inc. Related to Unsuitable Recommendations Made by President and CEO Martin Walcoe

Published on: February 24, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

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 Rico municipal bonds and misrepresented and omitted material facts concerning the risk and safety of the bonds. The recommendations and misrepresentations occurred at a time when credit rating agencies were downgrading Puerto Rico municipal bonds and indicated that further credit downgrades were imminent. At the time of the recommendations, Mr. Walcoe was an investment counselor and branch manager.

The claim also alleged that David Lerner also failed to suitably and properly allocate the customer’s brokerage account. Instead, David Lerner concentrated the customer’s account in risky, speculative, and uninsured Puerto Rico municipal bonds.

David Lerner’s recommendations to purchase and hold speculative Puerto Rico municipal bonds and its repeated recommendations to concentrate the customer’s investment accounts into speculative junk bonds were unsuitable and not in the customer’s best interest in light of the customer’s investment objectives and “middle ground” risk tolerance.

Investigative Report: Iorio Altamirano LLP Investigation into Arive Capital Markets Reveals Troubling Pasts for Owners, Executives, and Brokers

Published on: February 8, 2021 | by Iorio Altamirano

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 tactics. Other brokerage firms have a propensity for broker misconduct, such as excessive trading, churning, unauthorized trades, and misrepresentation. Iorio Altamirano LLP is a securities arbitration law firm based in New York City. We represent investors nationwide who have suffered investment losses due to wrongful conduct by financial advisors and brokerage firms. We are investor advocates.

SUMMARY:

In 2017, in collaboration with Columbia Law School, Reuters analyzed FINRA data and identified 48 firms whose brokers have been flagged for serious incidents. In 2021, our firm set out to update that analysis.