BrokeAndBroker.com Blog by Bill Singer WEEK IN REVIEW

November 12, 2016


Among the most common FINRA regulatory matters that are presented in the BrokeAndBroker.com Blog are those involving registered representative's failures to disclose (or to timely disclose) matters on their Form U4.  As noted in the blog by author Bill Singer, Esq., a non-disclosure allegation by FINRA takes on even greater dimension when the regulator asserts that the failure was willful because such a finding would render the respondent statutorily discharged. In recent years, it seems that the overwhelming majority of non-disclosure cases, particularly those involving criminal charges and tax liens, are settled with the finding of "willful," which is why today's featured FINRA settlement is so fascinating: There is no finding of willfulness despite a fact pattern disclosing multiple failures to timely disclose tax liens. READ


In today's BrokeAndBroker.com Blog, we got a mob of angry villagers chasing after Frankenstein's monster and then a cameo appearance by Godzilla. Then we got mistakes. Two types. We got clearly erroneous errors and we got obvious errors.  On top of that, we have time running out as a brokerage firm drops that ball before it can get off an audible. In the end, it's all really the customer's fault but that doesn't matter because we got rules, and those rule have to be followed. READ


Finally, a Finra Arbitrator gets it and thankfully makes the effort to note the devastating impact that defamation has on a veteran stockbroker's career. In pertinent part, the FINRA Arbitration Decision states:

FINRA picked up Respondent's defamatory language in the BrokerCheck, and the damage was done. Claimant's career was ruined when securities firms refused to hire her, and her ability to support herself and her family was destroyed.


Even with the benefit and wisdom of 20/20 hindsight, there are some situations that just seem to suck a victim into an unseen morass from which they are then dragged into oblivion. It's not that such victims are blameless; fact is, they often should have seen where they were heading and taken more steps to avoid the looming disaster. Notwithstanding, right or wrong, victim or victimizer, it's rarely an enjoyable event when you see a career unravel. As with so many of these tales, it's often a careless error or silly mistake that marks the first steps off the beaten path. As a recent FINRA saga shows, something as innocuous as a trade error can start the process that ends with our undoing. READ


Death is an uneasy topic for many to contemplate. In the financial services sector, however, the inevitability of death is a critical factor when implementing an investment strategy and estate planning. Taken a step further, death may even offer investment opportunities. A recent Securities and Exchange Commission case demonstrates how issues of mortality raise troubling legal and regulatory concerns. READ


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