Blog
Posted on Feb 19, 2012 By Lasky & Rifkind
Check out John Wasik's article over at Forbes.com on REIT investments. He provides a great list of caveats to consider before investing. The article can be found here . A general overview of this ...
Continue reading "Risk and REITs" »
Posted on Feb 1, 2012 By Heidi VonderHeide
Today, FINRA filed a disciplinary complaint against Charles Schwab & Co. for changes made to its customer account agreements. In October 2011, Schwab amended its agreements to include a Waiver of ...
Continue reading "FINRA: Schwab's Waivers Are Against the Rules." »
Posted on Jan 28, 2012 By Heidi VonderHeide
Email hacking has become increasingly common in recent years. So much so that most people either have been victims of this or know someone who has. These hackers somehow obtain and use your email ...
Continue reading "FINRA: Email Hacking Endangers Brokerage Accounts." »
Posted on Jan 22, 2012 By Heidi VonderHeide
A FINRA arbitration panel recently awarded a group of 40 investors $9.1 million in compensatory damages and attorneys fees arising out of the sale of failed non-traded private placements. The award ...
Continue reading "REIT Private Placement Awards Continue to Roll In. Actual Recovery in Remains in Doubt." »
Posted on Jan 22, 2012 By Heidi VonderHeide
The Stanford Securities Class Action Clearinghouse released its year end review this week, reporting that securities filings were slightly up in 2011. According to the report, a total of 188 federal ...
Continue reading "Class Action Clearinghouse: Class Action Filings Increase Slightly In 2011." »
Posted on Jan 14, 2012 By Heidi VonderHeide
FINRA recently filed a proposed rule change with the SEC, proposing to amend Rule 13204 of its Industry Arbitration Code. Rule 13204, which precludes class action claims from being arbitrated before ...
Continue reading "Proposed FINRA Rule Change Seeks to Expressly Preclude Certain Collective Actions" »
Posted on Jan 5, 2012 By Heidi VonderHeide
The Wall Street Journal online has an interesting article this week on securities often called tenancies-in-common, or "TICs," TICs are fractional-ownership type investments where several ...
Continue reading "WSJ: The Risks of TIC Real Estate Investments." »
Posted on Dec 18, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
The FINRA Board of Governors has asked for industry comment on proposed rule amendments it intends to submit to the SEC. Some of the topics include: Debt Research Conflicts of Interest: Modified ...
Continue reading "FINRA Board of Governors Discuss Upcoming Rule Proposals" »
Posted on Dec 18, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
Another settlement has come out of the fracas surrounding the 2007-2008 collapse of the Charles Schwab YieldPlus Fund. Under the terms of the most recent settlement, Randall Merc, a former president ...
Continue reading "YieldPlus Fund Fallout Continues" »
Posted on Dec 4, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
On November 29, 2011, FINRA announced that it had fined eight of its member firms and ten individuals for selling inappropriate private placement securities. According to the Notice , the firms and ...
Continue reading "FINRA Sanctions Eight Member Firms and 10 Individuals for Selling Troubled Private Placements" »
Posted on Oct 31, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
The New York Times website has an article today discussing the recent increase in FINRA claimants choosing non-industry arbitrators to oversee their arbitration. Previously, for claims eligible for a ...
Continue reading "More FINRA Claimants Choosing Non-Industry Panel of Arbitrators." »
Posted on Oct 25, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
FINRA's latest Investor Alert warns investors of the risks of investing in companies that have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Specifically, the Alert addresses misleading and fraudulent ...
Continue reading "FINRA Issues Investor Alert: Companies in Bankruptcy Rarely Make Blockbuster Investments." »
Posted on Oct 14, 2011 By Lasky & Rifkind
The 2011-2012 Supreme Court term is poised to consider several interesting topics: Without a warrant, can police track a suspect by sticking a GPS on his vehicle? Is an FCC rule on "fleeting ...
Continue reading "On the U.S. Supreme Court Docket: Tolling Possible Under SEA § 16(b)?" »
Posted on Oct 6, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
On October 5, 2011, the Second Circuit issued an enormous decision regarding FINRA's enforcement powers over its member persons and entities. In the case of Fiero v . Financial Industry Regulatory ...
Continue reading "Historic Ruling From Second Circuit: FINRA Cannot Sue to Collect Fines" »
Posted on Oct 5, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
Yesterday, FINRA issued new Investor Alert warning investors to be wary of the risks surrounding the "publicly registered non-exchange traded real estate investment trust (REIT)" or ...
Continue reading "FINRA Issues New Investor Alert: Public Non-Traded REITs-Perform a Careful Review Before Investing" »
Posted on Oct 5, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
On September 22 nd , 2011, the Second Circuit handed down its decision in UBS Financial Services Inc. v. West Virginia University Hospitals Inc., Docket No. 11-235-cv (Sept. 22, 2011) and, in so ...
Continue reading "Second Circuit Rules on Contested FINRA Jurisdiction Issue" »
Posted on Sep 26, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
Choosing the person with whom to trust your money can be a difficult decision. There are many different options when it comes to investment professionals and great variation when it comes to ...
Continue reading "RESEARCHING YOUR BROKER: TIPS AND TOOLS FROM FINRA AND THE SEC" »
Posted on Sep 26, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
On September 7, 2011, FINRA announced that it had fined five broker-dealers for charging customers additional commission charges that were “mischaracterized” on trade confirmations as ...
Continue reading "FINRA Announces Fines Issued To Five Broker-Dealers for Charging Customers Commissions Mischaracterized as Ancillary Fees" »
Posted on Sep 17, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
FINRA recently issued an investor alert warning investors about selling traditional, lower-risk investments in order to invest in higher-risk, highly complex investments such as high-yield bonds, ...
Continue reading "FINRA Issues Investor Warning About Chasing Returns in Non-Traditional Investments" »
Posted on Sep 17, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
The SEC and FINRA have issued an Investor Alert warning investors about investing in structured notes with principal protection. The Alert warns that these types of investments, despite their ...
Continue reading "FINRA, SEC Warns Investors About Investing in Structured Notes with Principal Protection." »
Posted on Sep 17, 2011 By Heidi VonderHeide
On August 24, 2011, FINRA issued a new Investor Alert titled "Gold" Stocks—Some Investments Mine Your Pocketbook.” With the price of gold recently hitting an all-time high, the ...
Continue reading "FINRA Issues Warning on Gold Stock Scams" »