Securities Lawyers Blog
According to the BrokerCheck records kept by Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) broker Luigi Mancusi (Mancusi) has been the subject of at least 4 customer complaints. The customer complaints against Mancusi allege securities law violations that claim unauthorized trading, unsuitable investments, misrepresentations, failure to supervise, and breach of fiduciary duty among other claims. The most recent complaint was filed in July 2015, and alleged $250,000 in losses due to unauthorized trading from November 2012 through November 2014. Another complaint was filed in July 2013 where the client alleged fraud and unsuitable investments given the client’s age, risk tolerance, and income need. The claimant alleged $322,000 in damages.
Mancusi entered the securities industry in 1992. From November 2002, until October 2012, Mancusi was associated with Wayne Hummer Investments L.L.C. From September 2012, onward Mancusi has been associated with Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Mancusi is also associated with David A. Noyes & Company out of the firm’s Lake Forrest, Illinois branch office location.
All advisers have a fundamental responsibility to deal fairly with investors including making suitable investment recommendations. In order to make suitable recommendations the broker must have a reasonable basis for recommending the product or security based upon the broker’s investigation of the investments properties including its benefits, risks, tax consequences, and other relevant factors. In addition, the broker must also understand the customer’s specific investment objectives to determine whether or not the specific product or security being recommended is appropriate for the customer based upon their needs.
The number of customer complaints against Mancusi is high relative to his peers. According to InvestmentNews, only about 12% of financial advisors have any type of disclosure event on their records. Brokers must publicly disclose certain types of reportable events on their CRD including but not limited to customer complaints. In addition to disclosing client disputes brokers must divulge IRS tax liens, judgments, and criminal matters. However, FINRA’s records are not always complete according to a Wall Street Journal story that checked with 26 state regulators and found that at least 38,400 brokers had regulatory or financial red flags such as a personal bankruptcy that showed up in state records but not on BrokerCheck. More disturbing is the fact that 19,000 out of those 38,400 brokers had spotless BrokerCheck records.
Gana Weinstein LLP represents investors who have suffered investment losses due to broker wrongdoing, such as churning and unsuitable investments. The majority of these claims may be brought in securities arbitration before FINRA. Our consultations are free of charge and the firm is only compensated if you recover.