Fraud

State and federal law makes it illegal for a financial advisor to make untrue statements (or to omit needed information) when selling you an investment. This means, for example, that a broker cannot tell you all of the “positives” of an investment without also fully disclosing its potential “negatives”. A financial advisor thus cannot lie about the risks of a stock (or strategy) nor neglect to give you the whole story as to an investment’s fees, features and risks. Securities fraud, however, encompasses more than just misrepresentations or omissions of fact. It also includes:

• Unsuitable recommendations – where the broker suggests a security or a strategy that he or she knows, or should know, is not appropriate for your circumstances;
• Account Churning – where your broker over-trades your account just to generate more commissions;
• Unauthorized trading – where your broker buys or sells securities on his own without your explicit, prior permission;
• Ponzi schemes, selling away and even outright theft from your account; and
• Failure to Supervise – where the firm has failed to monitor the advisor’s activity.

If you have lost money because of the investment fraud of your financial advisor, brokerage firm or investment advisor, we would like to help.

Contact the attorneys at PCJ Law for a free, informative consultation at 901-820-4433.