Victims we represent have suffered substantial financial losses in their portfolios. Many of our clients have difficulty understanding where their funds have gone and how their broker allowed such losses to occur in the first place. The current value of their investments is often unknown when they contact Goodman & Nekvasil. Our securities attorneys are experts in investment fraud and can help the client understand if they have a potential FINRA claim.

Investors in Florida are protected by legislative laws and statutes together with industry rules that prohibit brokers from engaging in fraud:

• Florida Division of Securities under the Florida Office of Financial Regulation regulates the sale of securities within the parameters of Florida law.
• Florida Consumer Protection Division of the Office of the Attorney General investigates and enforces violations in any trade or commerce.
• Florida Statue § 517 is a state law regulating the securities industry. Specifically, Section 517 states that it is unlawful and a violation of the law to offer, sell or purchase a security employing any device, scheme, or artifice to defraud. It is also unlawful to obtain any money by virtue of any untrue statement of material fact or to omit a material fact in order to mislead an individual to give money. Finally, it is unlawful to engage in any transaction or course of business that would operate as a deceit or fraud upon any individual in the state of Florida.
• FINRA oversees and regulates all broker-dealers in the United States. FINRA, in conjunction with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also creates and enforces the securities laws.

In many cases, broker-dealers and investment advisers sell alternative, high-risk investment products in order to garner large commissions.  These risky investments are only appropriate for a small group of sophisticated investors willing to endure excessive losses.