Brian Smiley moderated a panel discussion on “The Arbitrator’s Perspective” at the 2014 PIABA Annual Meeting in La Quinta, California. Brian has spoken over 15 times at PIABA meetings on topics ranging from brokerage misconduct to arbitration strategy and techniques. This most recent presentation was the subject of a 10/27/2014 article http://www.thestreet.com/story/12927272/1/fighting-your-broker-in-arbitration-finra-judges-give-some-tips.html in TheStreet by […]
U.S. Supreme Court Decision Gives Arbitration a Big Boost
In AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion (April 27, 2011), the U.S. Supreme Court handed a big win to corporations that want to avoid facing class actions for consumer fraud. In a five to four decision, the Court reversed a Ninth Circuit ruling that invalidated a provision in AT&T’s cell phone contracts which required customers to […]
An Overview of FINRA Arbitration
When clients open a brokerage account they usually sign a contract requiring them to resolve any disputes with the firm or their broker through arbitration rather than in court. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is normally the forum where these cases are heard. There are pros and cons to FINRA arbitration, but the basic […]
An Outline of the FINRA Arbitration Process For Customer-Broker Disputes
I. General A. Nearly all brokerage firms require retail clients to sign an agreement to have all disputes between them decided in arbitration rather than court. B. About 25 years ago, in Shearson/Am. Express, Inc. v. McMahon, 402 U.S. 220 (1987), the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the validity of arbitration clauses which require clients to […]
FINRA Arbitrators Order Citigroup To Pay $54 Million for MAT/ASTA Funds Claim
A FINRA arbitration panel has ordered Citigroup Global Markets to pay a combined $54 million in awards to clients who were sold the MAT/ASTA funds (FINRA Arbitration 09-03297). The claimants, who were former clients of Citigroup, alleged that they were the victims of securities fraud, unsuitability, and a failure to supervise arising from multiple investments […]
Ameriprise Financial May Let Securities America Go Under Due To Med Cap and Provident Private Placements
According to a report in Reuters, unnamed sources have stated that Ameriprise Financial is willing to let its broker-dealer subsidiary, Securities America, go out of business. Securities America is in financial trouble as a result of liabilities arising from its sales of $400 million in private placements of securities issued by Provident Royalties and Medical […]
Securities America/Medical Capital and Provident Royalties
Smiley Bishop & Porter LLP is investigating Securities America’s Medical Capital, Inc. promissory notes and Provident Royalties preferred stock. Clients have brought claims against the firm alleging that it failed to adequately investigate these products, that the investments were unsuitable, and that the firm did not disclose the products’ risks, which were substantial. The Securities […]
Judge Frees Investors to Pursue Medical Capital Holdings and Provident Royalties Arbitration Claims
Brokerage firms normally want to stay out of court and force their clients to sue in arbitration; yet, Securities America, a subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial, Inc., went to court in an effort to cram down a class action settlement on its clients who had brought individual FINRA arbitration claims against it. Why? Money (of course). Securities […]
Regions Morgan Keegan Bond Funds
Smiley Bishop & Porter LLP has represented a number of individual and institutional investors who bought shares of Morgan Keegan’s RMK High Yield Bond Funds. RMK Funds were marketed as low risk investments, despite a high concentration in subprime mortgage-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations. A particular problem was that the funds invested in low […]
East Tennessee Neurology P.C. Profit Sharing Plan v. Morgan Keegan & Company, Inc.
Profit sharing plan recovery for losses on RMK Bond Funds (FINRA, 2010) Brian Smiley and Mike Bishop, along with co-counsel, represented the pension plan for a medical practice. The plan’s losses arose from investments solicited in three Regions Morgan Keegan Bond Funds (RMK High Income, RMK Strategic Income, and RMK Multi-Sector Funds). These funds took incredible […]
