Investment Planners

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Enrique Lopez del castillo Franco in Firm Investment Planners, INC.

April 10, 2026 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Enrique Lopez del castillo Franco (Lopez del castillo Franco), previously associated with Investment Planners, INC., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Lopez del castillo Franco recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint with a damage request of $10,000.00 on January 15, 2026.

In November of 2025, client sent a complaint alleging unauthorized trading for $10000 of preferred shares of Prospect Capital. Claim states she notified the advisor after their October 2024 meeting to not place the the preferred stock trade, to which she stated the financial professional confirmed via text message.

Broker Alwin Martinez Gonzalez in Investment Planners, INC. Firm Has Customer Complaint

April 10, 2026 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Alwin Martinez Gonzalez (Martinez Gonzalez), previously associated with Investment Planners, INC., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Martinez Gonzalez recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint with a damage request of $10,000.00 on January 15, 2026.

In November of 2025, client sent a complaint alleging unauthorized trading for $10000 of preferredshares of Prospect Capital. Claim states she notified the advisor after their October 2024 meeting tonot place the the preferred stock trade, to which she stated the financial professional confirmed viatext message.

Broker James Parrelly in Investment Planners, INC. Firm Has Customer Complaint

January 13, 2026 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker James Parrelly (Parrelly), previously associated with Investment Planners, INC., has at least 3 disclosable events. These events include one customer complaint, 2 regulatory events, alleging that Parrelly recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a final customer complaint on June 28, 2022.

Without admitting or denying the findings, Parrelly consented to the sanction and to the entry of findings that he refused to appear for on-the-record testimony requested by FINRA during the course of an investigation regarding his potential use of his personal email address to conduct securities business, in violation of his member firm’s WSPs.

Broker Christopher Mackenzie in Investment Planners, INC. Firm Has Customer Complaint

November 14, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Christopher Mackenzie (Mackenzie), previously associated with Investment Planners, INC., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Mackenzie recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint with a damage request of $499,000.00 on June 27, 2022.

Client attorney alleges unsuitable investment, breach of fiduciaryduty/ negligence and negligent supervision. From 2013-2016

Broker Timothy Nobles in Investment Planners, INC. Firm Has Customer Complaint

October 13, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Timothy Nobles (Nobles), currently associated with Investment Planners, INC., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Nobles recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint with a damage request of $25,000.00 on August 01, 2025.

Client attorney alleges unsuitable investment, breach of fiduciary duty/ negligence.

Broker Timothy Nobles in Investment Planners, Inc. Firm Has Customer Complaint

February 5, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Timothy Nobles (Nobles), currently associated with Investment Planners, Inc., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Nobles recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint with a damage request of $35,000.00 on November 01, 2024.

The investment delivered an outcome that did not align with the claimants goals or understanding of the investment.

Advisor James Parrelly Accused of Churning and Sanctioned By Financial Regulator

August 10, 2020 | by Staff Attorney

According to BrokerCheck records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) broker James Parrelly (Parrelly), formerly associated with Investment Planners, Inc. (Investment Planners), has been subject to at least eight customer complaints, three regulatory complaints, and one employment termination for cause during his career. Several of those complaints against Parrelly concern allegations of high frequency trading activity also referred to as churning or excessive trading among other securities laws violations.

In June 2020, Parrelly was terminated by Investment Planners which alleged that at time of his resignation Parrelly was on heightened supervision and was engaging or had engaged in activities in violation of firm policies and/or FINRA rules, including: (1) use of personal email and texts to communicate with firm clients regarding their accounts; (2) failing to abide by terms of his heightened supervision plan (by continuing to use his personal email and texts and by not providing copies of his personal emails and texts to the firm); and (3) unauthorized trading. Parrelly then resigned in response to the anticipated commencement of an internal review into his activities.

In May 2020, FINRA suspended Parrelly finding that he consented to findings that he executed discretionary transactions in the securities account of a customer pursuant to the customer’s prior verbal authorization, but without written authorization from the customer or written approval from his member firm.

In April 2019 a customer complained that Parrelly violated the securities laws by alleging that Parrelly engaged in sales practice violations related to churning, negligence of duty and unsuitable investments. The claim is currently pending and seeks $500,000 in damages.

Cetera Advisor Donna Hines Subject to Complaints Over REITs and Alternative Investments

December 29, 2018 | by Staff Attorney

Advisor Donna Hines (Hines), currently employed by Cetera Advisors LLC (Cetera) has been subject to at least four customer complaints. According to a BrokerCheck report the customer complaints concern alternative investments and direct participation products (DPPs) such as non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs), oil & gas programs, annuities, and equipment leasing programs. The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP have extensive experience handling investor losses caused by these types of products.

In June 2018 a customer filed a complaint alleging that Hines violated the securities laws by alleging unsuitable investments from 2005 through 2018 and negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, misrepresentations, and common law fraud concerning alternative investments. The claim alleged $142,026 in damages and the claim is currently pending.

In December 2015 a customer filed a complaint alleging that Hines violated the securities laws by alleging negligence, misrepresentations, concerning alternative investments. The claim alleged $340,000 in damages and settled for $100,000.

William Brunner Barred From Securities Industry After Allegations of Excessive Trading

October 10, 2018 | by Staff Attorney

According to BrokerCheck records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) broker William Brunner (Brunner) has been subject to five customer complaints, one bankruptcy, two regulatory actions, and one termination for cause. Brunner was formerly registered with Investment Planners, Inc. (Investment Planners) until May 2017. Many of the customer complaints against Brunner concern allegations of high frequency trading activity also referred to as churning, unauthorized trading, and unsuitable investments.

In April 2018 FINRA barred Brunner from the industry stating that Brunner consented to the sanction and declined to appear for on-the-record testimony requested by FINRA in connection with an investigation into excessive trading and use of discretion without written authorization in customers’ accounts. In May 2017 Investment Planners terminated Brunner claiming that allegations were made by a client concerning unauthorized trading.

In June 2017 a customer filed a complaint claiming that Brunner engaged in negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, churning, unauthorized trading, and unsuitable investments claiming $1,000,000 in damages. The claim was settled.

Atlas Energy Oil and Gas Investments: Risks Investors Should Know Part II

December 17, 2014 | by Staff Attorney

This article follows up on a recent article reported in Reuters concerning Atlas Energy LP’s private placement partnerships in oil and gas. Atlas Resources LLC, a subsidiary the energy group, has filed documents with the SEC for Atlas Resources Series 34-2014 LP stating that it seeks to raise as much as $300 million by Dec. 31 of 2014. The deal allows investors to participate in investments where advances in drilling technology have turned previously inaccessible reservoirs of oil into viable prospects. In addition, Atlas promises to invest up to $145 million of its own capital alongside investors.

In the last article we explored how the house seems more likely to win on these deals over investors. But beyond the inherent risks with speculating on oil and gas and unknown oil deposits most investors don’t realize the deals are often unfair to investors. In a normal speculative investment as the investment risk goes up the investor demands greater rewards to compensate for the additional risk. However, with oil and gas private placements the risks are sky high and the rewards simply don’t match up.

In order to counter this criticism, issuers say that the tax benefits of their deals where the investor can write off more than 90 percent of their initial outlay the year they make it helps defray the risk and increase the value proposition. First, the same tax advantage claims are often nominal compared to the principal risk of loss of the investment as seen by Puerto Rican investors in the UBS Bond Funds who have now seen their investments decline by 50% or more in some cases. Second, often times brokers sell oil and gas investments indiscriminately to the young and old who have lower incomes and cannot take advantage of the tax benefits.