Articles Posted in Uncategorized

On October 31, 2017, Carmel, Indiana financial advisor Thomas J. Buck, 63, was charged under federal securities laws with one count of securities fraud. The unsealed criminal charges brought in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana allege that Mr. Buck defrauded his clients by charging excessive commissions. Mr. Buck has agreed…

On November 1, 2017, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) disclosed that registered representative Masood “Mike” Husain Azad (“Mike Azad”) has been barred from the securities industry following a FINRA enforcement proceeding. Specifically, without admitting or denying FINRA’s findings, “[A]zad consented to the sanction and to the entry of findings that he failed to provide…

A private equity fund managed by firm EnerVest Ltd. focused on oil and gas investments has reportedly lost essentially all of its value. EnerVest Energy Institutional Fund XII (which closed in 2010) and EnerVest Energy Institutional Fund XIII (which closed in 2013)- both of which raised over $1 billion equity capital- appear to be affected…

On April 12, 2016, former LPL Financial LLC (“LPL”) broker Charles C. Fackrell (CRD# 5369665) appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge David Cayer in order to plead guilty to one count of securities fraud for operating a $1.4 million Ponzi scheme. Based on documents filed with the federal court for the Western District of North Carolina,…

Investors who have suffered losses in American Finance Trust, a non-traded real estate investment trust (REIT) may have arbitration claims if the REIT was recommended by a stockbroker or investment advisor who lacked a reasonable basis for the recommendation, or if the nature of the investment was misrepresented by a stockbroker or financial advisor. According…

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently sought documents form a group of companies known as Woodbridge that has previously been accused of selling unregistered securities by state securities regulators. Woodbridge, based in California, has reportedly raised over $1 billion from investors- allegedly by offering the sale of unregistered securities through unregistered brokers. Woodbridge and…

Investors in Puerto Rico bonds – in particular, retail investors located in the U.S. Territory who invested in various proprietary closed-end funds (“CEFs”) structured and marketed by firms including UBS Puerto Rico, Santander Securities, and Popular Securities — have suffered massive losses since late 2013 when Puerto Rico’s bond prices witnessed significant deterioration following years…

If you have invested in HMS Income Fund (“HMS”) upon the recommendation of your financial advisor, you may be able to recover your losses through arbitration before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”). A Maryland corporation formed in 2011, HMS is sponsored by Hines Interests Limited Partnership (“Hines”). HMS is structured as a closed-end management…

Investors who purchased shares in a leveraged inverse ETF or mutual fund upon the recommendation of their financial advisor may have arbitration claims. In today’s investment environment, many retail investors have been coaxed into investing in financial products beyond the traditional universe of stocks, bonds, and bank deposit products such as CDs. One such alternative…

On June 30, 2017, the former CFO of American Capital Properties Inc. (“ARCP”), Brian Block, was found guilty of securities fraud and related crimes in connection with reporting false numbers in quarterly filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The verdict was handed down following a nearly three-week trial held in the U.S. District…