While no company or individual wants to be the subject of an SEC investigation, it can be helpful to understand what the SEC is and how it works. Understanding the SEC and Its Investigative Process The SEC is first and foremost a civil law enforcement agency charged with the enforcement of the federal securities laws...Read More

As a stock market investment, your financial advisor and brokerage firm owe you certain legal duties and responsibilities when you entrust them to manage your hard-earned monies. Unfortunately, they don’t always do the right thing, and may act in their own self-interest at your direct financial expense. It is not always easy to spot. Pay...Read More

If you are under investigation by the SEC for insider trading, you are likely to have many questions and, understandably, serious concerns. I decided to write this article to answer many of the basic questions those under investigation for insider trading typically have, as well as to provide insight into the process by which the...Read More

If you are under investigation for trading stock while in possession of material nonpublic information, you could be charged with insider trading. This is a serious crime with potentially serious consequences, including criminal exposure. Being investigated for or charged with SEC violations, including insider trading and any other form of securities fraud, can be difficult...Read More

One of the first things that a lawyer with the Securities and Exchange Commission Division of Enforcement learns is that there are too many cases and too few lawyers on staff. This fundamental reality – a wide disparity between the government’s available resources and its obligation to enforce the securities laws – explains in large...Read More

Under Investigation by the SEC, DOJ or FINRA? If you are under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), state regulators or the Department of Justice (DOJ), stay calm. Your first move should be to call a knowledgeable attorney. Contact The Law Firm of David R. Chase, P.A.,...Read More

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The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) censured and fined Raymond James Financial Services (Raymond James) $400,000.00 for failing to implement procedures to detect suspicious transactions in the accounts of a customer who used the firm’s accounts to carry out a Ponzi scheme. The fraudulent scheme resulted in losses of approximately $17.8 million to the individual...Read More

UBS Financial Services, Inc. was a big seller of Lehman Principal Protected Notes, hawking almost $1 billion worth to its clients. The Lehman Notes were pitched to investors, including retirees and the elderly, seeking a safe and conservative “risk free” haven for their monies. As is now painfully clear, the “100 percent principal protection” guarantee...Read More

The Securities and Exchange Commission has alleged in court that the late Kenneth Wayne Mcleod engaged in a long-running Ponzi scheme that targeted and defrauded active and retired Federal Employees. The core of the alleged fraud involved McLeod’s sale of the FEBG Bond Fund, which he touted as a safe and conservative investment that would...Read More