Boca Raton Brokerage Firm Misconduct Attorney - Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce

Sep 14, 2016

Boca Raton Firm Newbridge Securities Fined for UIT Management Violations

Newbridge Securities Corporation (Newbridge) of Boca Raton, Florida submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) to the Department of Enforcement of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for allegedly failing to apply sales charge discounts to certain customers’ eligible purchases of unit investment trusts (UITs) in violation of FINRA Rule 2010. A UIT is a type of Investment Company that issues securities and holds a fixed portfolio. UITS typically offer “break points” which reduce client fees based on the amount invested. FINRA requires that all UIT transactions take place “on the most advantageous terms available to the customer.” FINRA investigators found that Newbridge failed to apply sales discounts to customers resulting in clients paying excessive charges.

Dec 21, 2015

Woodbury Financial Services Representative Fined for Converting Client’s Funds

Joseph Butler of Brandywine, Maryland was barred by the Department of Enforcement of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for allegedly converting a customer’s funds for his own personal use. Mr. Butler entered the insurance industry in 1967 and in 1994 became registered with Woodbury Financial Services, Inc. (Woodbury) as an investment company and variable contracts products limited representative. In 2012, Mr. Butler was terminated after he failed to disclose he was listed as a beneficiary for multiple client banking accounts. In August 2013 FINRA filed a complaint against Mr. Butler alleging that he converted a client’s funds for his own personal use. FINRA alleged that Mr. Butler violated Woodbury policies and took advantage of an elderly client using their funds to pay his taxes. This client was an elderly widow with diminishing mental health. Mr. Butler frequently visited this client and noticed her mental and physical health was declining and that she was not paying her bills. In 2009 Mr. Butler was added as a joint account holder to her bank accounts. On that same day, FINRA found that Mr. Butler transferred $25,000 from his clients account to his own personal account. In 2009 alone, Mr. Butler wrote a cashed three checks from his clients account.

Sep 9, 2015

LPL Financial Fined for MSRB and FINRA Rule Violations

The Department of Market Regulation of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) received a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) from LPL Financial LLC (LPL Financial) for allegedly purchasing from and selling municipal securities to customers at prices that were not fair or reasonable. The Department of Market Regulation conducted two reviews of LPL Financial related to the firm’s compliance with municipal bond fair pricing requirements and corporate bond fair pricing requirements. During the municipal bond review between January and March 2009, FINRA found that for twelve transactions. LPL Financial purchased municipal securities for its own account from a customer and/or sold municipal securities for its own account to a customer at an aggregate price that included and commissions or service charges. FINRA alleged that such actions were not fair or reasonable and did not represent the best judgment of the broker as they didn’t express the fair market value of the securities.