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The Form U4 is the basic application for any person seeking to become registered with a FINRA member firm. Although updated in 2009, the U4 is an antiquated document in need of overhaul. In order to consider revisions to the U4, it is important to understand its role in today’s financial services world. Historically, the U4 was an administrative document used by self-regulatory agencies and state agencies for determining whether to grant requests for securities licenses. While the U4 retains this original purpose, that purpose has evolved. All of the information contained within a U4 application is submitted to the Central Registration Depository system, operated by FINRA. According to FINRA, Web CRD® “contains the registration records of more than 4,015 registered broker-dealers, and the qualification, employment and disclosure histories of more than 642,980 active registered individuals.” All of the information contained on the U4 becomes public, but only some of that information is available through FINRA’s BrokerCheck® website (which obtains its information from Web CRD®). Prior to the advent of BrokerCheck®, it was very difficult for a consumer to review a broker’s background. BrokerCheck® changed that. BrokerCheck® serves as “a free tool which is part of FINRA’s ongoing efforts to help investors make informed choices about brokers and brokerage firms.”

Because the U4 serves as BrokerCheck’s template, the U4 must be evaluated in the context of one of its purposes, helping investors make informed choices about brokers. With this purpose in mind, the U4, as well as BrokerCheck®, are ripe for change.

So what information is missing from the U4 that investors would find helpful in making informed choices about brokers? The first glaring absence from the U4 is any question about the applicant’s education. The only context in which education is mentioned is in the instructions to question 12, in which an applicant is asked to provide his employment history for the past ten years. According to the instructions, if an applicant was engaged in “full time education” within the past 10 years, that information should be provided in the employment history section. The applicant is not asked whether he or she finished the sixth grade, graduated from high school or college, or has a graduate school degree. The reason this information is not requested is because the securities industry has no minimum education criteria for the various licenses that permit individuals to manage client assets. To the extent FINRA wants BrokerCheck® to help investors make informed choices, an Education History section needs to be added to the U4. How many people would knowingly trust the management of their life’s savings to a person who did not graduate from high school? Or only finished one year of college? The answer is few, if any. So why hide this information? In order for the U4, as the template for BrokerCheck®, to be relevant in the 21st century, it should be revised in order to require the disclosure of an applicant’s entire education history. Stay tuned for Part II!

Over the past several months, FINRA has received an influx of arbitration case filings related to Puerto Rico bonds. Most cases are filed by Puerto Rico residents. FINRA held various conversations and meetings concerning administration of these cases. After careful consideration, FINRA determined to issue the following guidance:

Venue:

FINRA will determine venue in the Puerto Rico bond cases in accordance with Rule 12213 of the Customer Code of Arbitration Procedure (the “Code”) which states in relevant part that “the Director will select the hearing location closest to the customer’s residence at the time of the events giving rise to the dispute . . . .” FINRA cases generally are venued where the customer resides, the transactions took place, and the witnesses are located. These criteria all point to Puerto Rico as the appropriate venue.
Accordingly, FINRA will not modify its existing venue rule and procedures absent the agreement of the parties.

FINRA will follow Rule 12213 in assigning venue for the following reasons:

• FINRA’s longstanding rule and policies, which were codified in 2007, were designed for the convenience and protection of customers;
• The solicitations and transactions in these cases took place in Puerto Rico;
• Many Claimants in these cases are elderly and travel to the continental United States would be difficult, burdensome and expensive;
• Many Claimants’ attorneys are located in Puerto Rico and requested venue in Puerto Rico;
• Many named individual associated person Respondents are located in Puerto Rico;
• Almost all potential witnesses are located in Puerto Rico, including non-party witnesses;
• Compelling non-party witnesses located in Puerto Rico to testify at arbitrations in the continental United States may be difficult;
• The total expenses, including Claimant and witness travel, of requiring individuals from Puerto Rico to travel to the United States would be substantial.

FINRA will continue to allow customers with more than one residence to choose venue based on the location of any of their residences. Further, if all parties in an arbitration case agree in writing to a hearing location other than one based on the customer’s residence, FINRA will select that hearing venue.

Arbitrator Pools:

FINRA will initially provide arbitrators for the cases venued in Puerto Rico from Puerto Rico and from other hearing locations within the Southeast Region and Texas. Counsel for Claimants and Respondents were in agreement that this was the area from which to seek arbitrators to expand the available roster in Puerto Rico.

FINRA has expanded the available pool of arbitrators to serve in Puerto Rico from these states and FINRA will pay their travel expenses. To date, approximately 700 currently eligible arbitrators on the FINRA roster have agreed to serve in Puerto Rico. FINRA continues to expand the available pool of Puerto Rico arbitrators willing to serve. Additionally, FINRA is actively recruiting and training arbitrators who reside in Puerto Rico. As a reminder, parties retain the option to agree to modify the provisions of Rule 12401 to have a sole public arbitrator decide their case, as opposed to a three arbitrator panel, even in cases in which the amount in controversy exceeds $100,000.00.

Interpreter Services:

FINRA arbitration hearings generally are conducted in English. However, FINRA recognizes that Spanish is the primary language in Puerto Rico and that many Claimants are not conversant in English. Therefore, at FINRA’s request, the following firms have agreed to bear the costs of consecutive translation services in the Puerto Rico bond fund cases venued in Puerto Rico in which these firms are a named Respondent and Claimant or Claimant’s witnesses are not fluent in English and translation is necessary: UBS, Merrill Lynch, Santander Securities and Popular Securities. In addition, Oriental Financial Services has agreed to consider bearing such costs on a case-by-case basis upon request. Customer-Claimants should make arrangements directly with counsel for these firms regarding translation services. Please note that the agreement is to bear costs of translation when it is necessary, and any disagreements between the parties regarding interpreter services shall be addressed by the arbitration panels.

The Customer Code of Arbitration, Code of Mediation, Uniform Forms Guide, Resources for Parties Representing Themselves and Filing a Claim–Frequently Asked Questions are available in Spanish on FINRA’s website.

FINRA is providing this information and the translation of the above-mentioned documents in Spanish as a service to the customers who use or would like to use its forum. If you have questions concerning the meaning or application of a particular rule or law, please consult with an attorney who specializes in securities law. The English versions of the FINRA Dispute Resolution Codes serve as the official versions of our rules.

Additional Information

Service of Arbitrators:

Counsel for Claimants and Respondents have agreed that FINRA should not limit the service of arbitrators who have previously served on a case involving Puerto Rico bonds through Award. Parties, of course, have available to them the FINRA rules on causal challenges and the Director’s authority to remove an arbitrator as set forth in Rule 12407.

Costs of Witnesses:
Witness costs will be minimized by setting venue in Puerto Rico, where almost all of the likely witnesses are located. Therefore, FINRA will follow its existing rules concerning witness costs.

Disclosures:
The arbitrators will be asked to answer an agreed upon set of disclosure questions submitted by the parties as part of the list selection process in order to alert the parties to possible conflicts.
Please also note that any party may request additional information from an arbitrator whose name appears on the arbitrator ranking form. If a party requests additional information about an arbitrator, FINRA will request the additional information from the arbitrator, and will send any response to all of the parties at the same time.

It is ironic that Puerto Rico will serve as host for NASAA’s 2015 Annual Conference. Puerto Rico is ground zero since 2013 for claims of investor losses. Since 2013 hundreds of arbitration claims have been filed by investors in Puerto Rico municipal debt. Most of the claims have been brought by clients of UBS Financial Services. As of this date there have been three FINRA arbitration awards rendered against UBS Financial Services, all in favor of the investor Claimants. Puerto Rico bond investors have filed claims against other firms as well, including Merrill Lynch, Santander Securities, Popular Securities and Oriental Financial Services Corp.
Likewise, investors in the “upper 48 states” have also suffered significant losses investing in Puerto Rico debt. Those investors who have not already retained counsel should have their portfolios evaluated by an experienced Securities Arbitration Attorney. David A. Weintraub, Esq. spent the first
13 years of his career representing Wall Street. He now represents investors asserting claims against Wall Street’s largest firms. He is available to consult with you at your convenience.