Unregistered Stockbrokers and Unregistered Sales Assistants

By law, stockbrokers and certain sales assistants must be registered with FINRA and with state regulators. If they fail to meet this requirement, an investor may have the right to cancel a purchase or sale.

Sales assistants, by the nature of their position, are often not registered. This means, effectively, that they are very limited in what they are permitted to do. If a sales assistant is poorly supervised, that person may “cross the line” and perform tasks that only a registered person is permitted to perform. In such situations, a brokerage firm may by law be required, at an investor’s request, to reverse a purchase or sale.

If you or your client have been a victim of an unregistered stockbroker or unregistered sales assistant, please contact our office at 800-718-1422.

Typical Securities Claims

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Breach of Fiduciary Duty

Fiduciary Duty is a legal obligation of one party to act in the best financial interest of another – to place another’s interests first – to make the client’s interests paramount. Read More
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Unsuitability

FINRA's suitability rule states that firms and their associated persons “must have a reasonable basis to believe” that a transaction or investment strategy involving a recommended security is suitable for the customer. This reasonable belief must be based on Read More
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Failure to Diversify

Failure to diversify means that a Stockbroker or Financial Advisor fails to recommend an appropriate allocation of one’s assets into different investment asset classes. Read More
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Churning

Churning, in its most basic form, occurs when a stockbroker/financial advisor buys and sells securities for and account, without regard for the customer’s investment interests, for the purpose of generating commissions. Read More
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Unregistered Stockbrokers and Unregistered Sales Assistants

By law, stockbrokers and certain sales assistants must be registered with FINRA and with state regulators. If they fail to meet this requirement, an investor may have the right to cancel a purchase or sale. Read More
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Unregistered Securities

Before securities, such as stocks, bonds and notes can be offered for sale to the public, they first must be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and/or a state regulator. Read More
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Concentrated Positions

If you have a large percentage of your assets invested in a single stock or bond, a small number of stocks or bonds, or even a single sector of stocks or bonds , then you have a concentrated position. Concentrated positions expose the investor to significantly greater risk Read More
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Negligence

Negligence occurs when a financial advisor or stockbroker breaches a general duty of care resulting in damages.Just like the victim of an auto accident may be entitled to sue the driver who was at fault, the victim of a stockbroker’s negligence may also be entitled to seek relief. Read More
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Unauthorized Trading

Unauthorized trading is the purchase or sale of securities that a Financial Advisor or Stockbroker makes for a customer without the customer’s permission. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has a specific rule that prohibits any Financial Advisor or Stockbroker from making unauthorized securities trades Read More
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Breach of Contract

When an investor has an oral or written contract with a financial advisor or stockbroker, and that person breaches their contractual obligations, they may be financially responsible for the breach. Read More
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Breach of Third Party Contract

In certain situations, you may be a third-party beneficiary of a brokerage firm’s contract with a regulator, such as FINRA. Read More
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Failure to Follow Instructions

As a fundamental element of their relationship with the customer, Stockbrokers/Financial Advisors, as well as registered sales assistants, are required to follow the customer’s instructions. They may be liable if they fail to do so. Read More