Fiduciary Duties

Aaron Brodt Subject to Multiple Customer Complaints Alleging Breach of Fiduciary Duty

July 3, 2018 | by Staff Attorney

The securities attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating Peachcap Securities, Inc. (Peachcap Securities) broker Aaron Brodt (Brodt). According to BrokerCheck Records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Brodt has been subject to four customer complaints alleging breach of fiduciary duty and unsuitable investment recommendations. One of these disputes is currently still pending. In addition, Brodt has also been subject to one financial action.

Most recently, in May 2017, a customer alleges that from 2014 to 2015, Brodt breached his fiduciary duty and was grossly negligent in his recommendation of 4 investments that he placed the customer in.

In April 2016, a customer alleged that from May 2015 to October 2015, Brodt recommended unsuitable investments to the customer. The case was settled at $116,667.

FMSBonds Advisor Zachary Feinsilver Alleged to Have Recommended Unsuitable Puerto Rico Municipal Bonds

June 27, 2018 | by Staff Attorney

According to BrokerCheck records financial advisor Zachary Feinsilver (Feinsilver), employed by FMSBonds, Inc. (FMSBonds), has been subject to three customer complaints. According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Feinsilver has been accused by a customers of unsuitable investment advice concerning recommendations to invest in Puerto Rico bonds. Puerto Rico has been devastated by a $70 billion debt it cannot pay in addition to extensive hurricane damage. However, according to news reports, the process to resolve Puerto Rico’s debts could take years. In fact, it has taken more than two years of debate with Puerto Rico’s government, creditors, and federal lawmakers just to get to this point.

In February 2018 a client complained that certain aspects of bonds were misrepresented by Feinsilver. The complaint was closed.

In December 2017 another customer complained that Feinsilver made unsuitable investments in Puerto Rico bonds claiming $100,000 in damages. The claim was settled for $50,000.

Jason Zwibel Subject to Pending Customer Complaint for Alleging Over $2.5 Million in Damages

June 27, 2018 | by Staff Attorney

The securities attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating Garden State Securities, Inc. (Garden State) broker Jason Zwibel (Zwibel). According to BrokerCheck records, Zwibel has been subject to 4 customer complaints, one of which is still pending.

In November 2017, a customer alleged that Zwibel engaged in unsuitable investments and breach of fiduciary duty from 2013 to 2016. The customer is requesting $2,670,750 in damages. This complaint is still pending.

In June 2007, a customer alleged that Zwiber engaged in breach of fiduciary duty, misrepresentation of investments, and failure to supervise. The case settled at $50,000.

Justin Vaccaro Subject to Multiple Customer Disputes for Alleged Committed Fraud

June 22, 2018 | by Staff Attorney

The securities attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating claims against J.W. Cole Financial, Inc. (J.W. Cole Financial) broker Justin Vaccaro (Vaccaro). According to BrokerCheck records, Vaccaro has been subject to three customer complaints, one of which is still pending.

In September 2017, a customer alleged that Vaccaro engaged in Breach of Fiduciary duty, unsuitable investments, fraudulent misrepresentations, and failure to supervise. The case settled at $70,000.

In September 2017, a customer alleged that Vaccaro had advised for unsuitable investments, violated the Oregon Securities Law, breached fiduciary duty, and committed fraud and deceit. The client has requested $195,000 in damages. This dispute is still pending.

Broker Dennis Rasmusson Subject to Customer Complaints

November 1, 2017 | by Staff Attorney

The investment lawyers of Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating claims against Dennis Rasmusson (Rasmusson). According to BrokerCheck records, Rasmusson has been subject to two customer disputes and regulatory action.

In 2014, a customer alleged that Rasmusson failed to follow instructions, traded excessively and breached his fiduciary duty. The damage amount requested was $500,000 and this dispute settled for $110,000. In 2013, a customer alleged mismanagement of portfolio. This dispute was settled for $34,000.

In 2011 the state of Nebraska sanctioned Rasmusson for failing to keep certain books and records and maintain policies and procedures manual.

James Geake Subject to Variable Annuity and Alternative Investment Complaints

October 2, 2017 | by Staff Attorney

In February 2017, broker James Geake (Geake) was subject to a customer complaint alleging $347,083 in damages concerning equity indexed annuities. The customer alleges that he was sold equity indexed annuities that gave the broker a bonus for signing clients and that it was a bait and switch scheme. The complaint is currently pending.

Geake is currently associated with Madison Avenue Securities, LLC (Madison Avenue). The law offices of Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating customer complaints concerning this broker. According BrokerCheck Geake has a total of four customer complaint disclosures including allegations of unsuitable investments in annuities and alternative investments among other claims.

Equity indexed and variable annuities are complex financial and insurance products. In fact, recently the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released a publication entitled: Variable Annuities: What You Should Know encouraging investors to ask questions about the variable annuity before investing. Essentially, a variable annuity is a contract with an insurance company under which the insurer agrees to make periodic payments to you. The investor chooses the investments made in the annuity and value of your variable annuity will vary depending on the performance of the investment options chosen. The primary benefits of variable annuities are the death benefit and tax deferment of investment gains.

Gana LLP Investigates Pharmaceutical Companies Underwritten by Brokerage Firms

September 29, 2017 | by Staff Attorney

The securities lawyers of Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating pharmaceutical company stocks underwritten and recommended by brokers at National Securities Corporation and vFinance. IPOs and offerings of small pharmaceutical companies are incredibly risky – on par with the risks of penny stocks. Most small pharmaceutical companies have limited business operations other than research and development of a handful of drugs. Often times the entire value of the company’s stock is a wager on FDA or other regulatory approval of a limited number of drugs – in some instances a single drug. Every announcement concerning the fate of drug can be the death knell of the stock and company.

Take the example of Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc. The stock peaked in July 2015 at over $12 a share. Then one month later in one day the stock dropped 16% after news came out that a phase 3 clinical trial was halted for the company’s lead compound. By July 2016 the company would trade at under $.50 a share, nearly a complete loss.

National Securities Corporation or vFinance are believed to be underwriting and offering investments in the following pharmaceutical companies:

Centaurus Broker Bryon Martinsen Subject to Multiple Complaints Over Alternative Investments

January 20, 2017 | by Staff Attorney

Our investment attorneys are investigating customer complaints filed with The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) against Bryon Martinsen (Martinsen) currently associated with Centaurus Financial, Inc. (Centaurus) alleging unsuitable investments, breach of fiduciary duty, misrepresentations, and fraud among other claims. According to brokercheck records Martinsen has been subject to five customer complaints, one judgment or lien, and one employment termination for cause. Many of the complaints involve direct participation products (DPPs) such as non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs) and other alternative investments.

Our firm has experience representing investment fraud victims with these investments against Centaurus. See Gana Weinstein LLP Wins Arbitration Award On Behalf of Client Against Centaurus Financial. In that case, the Claimant alleged that the broker involved invested over $2,000,000 in exclusively high cost products and 50% of those investments were in alternative investments such as private placements, oil and gas partnerships, and REITs. The other 50% was invested in variable and equity-indexed annuities. Award Can Be Found Here.

All of these investments come with high costs and have historically underperformed even safe benchmarks, like U.S. treasury bonds. For example, products like oil and gas partnerships, REITs, and other alternative investments are only appropriate for a narrow band of investors under certain conditions due to the high costs, illiquidity, and huge redemption charges of the products, if they can be redeemed at all. However, due to the high commissions brokers earn on these products they sell them to investors who cannot profit from them and have created a large market for a failed product. Further, investor often fail to understand that they have lost money in these illiquid investments until many years after investing. In sum, for all of their costs and risks, investors in these programs are in no way additionally compensated for the loss of liquidity, risks, or cost.

Customers Complain About Broker Alan Thomilson’s Annuity Practices

November 23, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

Our firm’s investment attorneys are investigating customer complaints filed with The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) against Alan Thomilson (Thomilson) currently associated with Lincoln Financial Securities Corporation (Lincoln Financial) alleging unsuitable recommendations to invest in variable products such as variable annuities, equity indexed annuities, and variable life insurance. According to brokercheck records Thomilson has been subject to six customer complaints and one criminal matter.

In March 2015 a customer alleged that Thomilson misrepresented a recommendation to replace an existing variable annuity with an equity indexed annuity and that the recommendation was not suitable causing $125,000 in damages. The claim is currently pending.

Variable annuities and equity indexed annuities are complex financial and insurance products. In fact, recently the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released a publication entitled: Variable Annuities: What You Should Know encouraging investors to ask questions about the variable annuity before investing. Essentially, a variable annuity is a contract with an insurance company under which the insurer agrees to make periodic payments to you. The investor chooses the investments made in the annuity and value of your variable annuity will vary depending on the performance of the investment options chosen. The primary benefits of variable annuities are the death benefit and tax deferment of investment gains.

Wells Fargo Financial Advisor Charles Lynch Accused of Unsuitable Energy Related Investments

January 24, 2016 | by Staff Attorney

The securities lawyers of Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating a number of customer complaints involving Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC (Wells Fargo) brokers, including financial advisor Charles Lynch (Lynch), concerning allegations that the investors have been recommended or their advisory accounts have been mismanaged to hold high concentrations of energy related investments. According to Lynch’s publicly available records, there are 11 customer complaints with 9 of those complaints being filed in 2015 all related to energy investments. The customer complaints against Lynch allege securities law violations that including unsuitable investments among other claims.

Our firm is investigating potential securities claims against brokerage firms over sales practices related to the recommendations of oil & gas and commodities products such as exchange traded notes (ETNs), structured notes, private placements, master limited partnerships (MLPs), leveraged ETFs, mutual funds, and individual stocks. Our firm has written numerous articles concerning the dangers of MLP investments. MLPs are publicly traded partnerships. About 86% of the total MLP securities market, a $490 billion sector, can be attributed to energy and natural resource companies. However, most of these companies are heavily reliant on high oil prices to sustain their business models.

Before recommending investments in oil and gas and commodities related investments, brokers and advisors must ensure that the investment is appropriate for the investor and conduct due diligence on the company in order to understand the risks and prospects of the company. Many of these companies relied upon high energy prices in order to sustain their operations. As reported by the Wall Street Journal the drop in oil and energy prices and the industry downturn has made it difficult for many companies to refinance their debts.