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Increasingly, hackers are breaking into retail brokerage accounts in order to steal investor assets or make illegal trades. This rise in cyber-generated theft and fraudulent securities schemes and activities has prompted the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to begin tracking cyber-related criminal activity more closely. In June 2017, the SEC appointed Stephanie Avakian and Steven…

If your broker or financial advisor recommended an oil and gas investment(s), and you have sustained losses in connection with that energy product(s), you may be able to recover your losses through FINRA arbitration. According to data and statistics disseminated in February 2017 by Oilfield Services counsel at Haynes and Boone, LLP, a total of…

Investors in Sierra Income Corporation (“Sierra”), or a similar non-traded investment product may be able to recover losses on their investments through FINRA arbitration. The attorneys at Law Office of Christopher J. Gray, P.C. have considerable experience in representing aggrieved investors who have lost money due to unsuitable recommendations to purchase securities, including illiquid non-traded…

On May 3, 2017, Puerto Rico filed for a form of bankruptcy protection pursuant to a federal law passed in 2016 known as Promesa. This law allows for Puerto Rico to facilitate a debt restructuring process in court that is akin to U.S. bankruptcy protection. This marks the first time in our nation’s history that…

With increasing frequency retail investors are encountering scenarios in which they are offered an opportunity to invest in a private placement. A private placement – often referred to as a non-public offering – is an offering of a company’s securities that are not registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Under the federal securities…

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) fined Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. $5 million for alleged negligent disclosure failures in connection with the sale of five-year senior debt notes to retail customers. In particular, Merrill Lynch allegedly failed to adequately disclose certain costs, making it appear that the fixed costs were lower than…

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Comission (SEC) has reached an agreement with UBS under which UBS will pay more than $15 million to settle claims arising out of its sale of hundreds of millions of dollars of reverse converible notes to customers. According to the SEC, UBS sold about $548 million dollars of “reverse convertible…

InvestorLawyers.net’s founder Christopher J. Gray is presently handling or has handeld cases against various brokerage firms on behalf of investors who sustained losses various preferred stocks of brokerage firms. In one such case involving a retiree, UBS accumulated large positions in preferred stocks and similar Instruments. Of note, UBS substantially concentrated these investments in preferred…

Law Office of Christopher J. Gray wishes to alert investors to the possibility that recommendations of oil and gas investments by broker-dealers may be unsuitable, depending on the individual characteristics of investors and whether the broker had a reasonable basis for the recommendation. According to a Wall Street Journal article, there have been a total…

According to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), former Independent Financial Group (Independent), broker Robyn H. Lee (Lee) has had at least thirteen (13) customer complaints made against him, mostly involving sales of tenants in common (TICs). Customer complaintsreportedly included unsuitable investment recommendations, breach of fiduciary duty, misrepresentations and fraud. Lee has been registered with…