Securities Litigation & Arbitration
The firm represents individual customers, brokers, and brokerage firms in federal and state court, before the National Association of Securities Dealers ("NASD"), the New York Stock Exchange ("NYSE"), and in other arbitral venues in all matters arising from the purchase and sale of securities and investments. The products in issue include common stocks, fixed annuities, equity-indexed annuities, variable annuities, bonds, bond funds, collateralized mortgage obligations, closed-end funds, commodities, derivatives, foreign currencies, government securities, high-yield instruments, insurance-related products, mutual funds, new issues, options (equities and index), partnerships, private placements, and unit trusts. Often in issue is the propriety of complex investment strategies involving futures, hedging, margin, stock options, reverse-repo contracts, straddles, and a variety of other investment techniques.
The legal theories of liability and remedies sought arise under several acts and statutes:
The Securities Act of 1933, often referred to as the "truth in securities" law has two basic objectives:
The legal theories of liability and remedies sought arise under several acts and statutes:
The Securities Act of 1933, often referred to as the "truth in securities" law has two basic objectives:
- Require that investors receive financial and other significant information concerning securities being offered for public sale; and
- Prohibit deceit, misrepresentations, and other fraud in the sale of securities.
The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 - Congress used to create the Securities and Exchange Commission.
- The Act empowers the SEC with broad authority over all aspects of the securities industry.
- The Act also identifies and prohibits certain types of conduct in the markets and provides the Commission with disciplinary powers over regulated entities and persons associated with them.
Other important Acts and Statues include:
The Investment Advisers Act of 1940
The Investment Company Act of 1940
The Florida Securities and Investor Protection Act
The Florida Civil Theft Statute
The Florida Abuse of the Elderly Statute
Claims surrounding these Acts and Statutes often involve allegations of embezzlement, conversion, churning, conversion, failure to execute orders or follow instructions, failure to diversify, failure to hedge, forgery, front-running, market manipulation, suitability, over-concentration, theft, and unauthorized trading.
The firm has experience with foreign finder issues, claims involving offshore investors, and other matters arising from international brokerage accounts and transactions.
The firm has experience with foreign finder issues, claims involving offshore investors, and other matters arising from international brokerage accounts and transactions.