Goodman & Nekvasil P.A., May Recover Investor Losses – Christopher S. Laws (Christopher Laws) Charged with Fraud by the SEC and Fired by LPL Financial, LLC
From 2005 until Christopher Laws’ firing in 2014, Christopher Laws was licensed with LPL Financial, LLC. Christopher Laws was subsequently licensed with BCG Securities, Inc. According to FINRA’s records, Christopher Laws was fired by LPL Financial, LLC on December 1, 2014. LPL Financial, LLC reported to FINRA that Christopher Laws’ firing related to alleged concerns regarding business practices, including communications with customers.
FINRA also reports that a civil court action initiated by the SEC, involving Christopher Laws’ conduct, is currently pending. FINRA reports that according to the SEC, Christopher Laws and three others, Jonathan Cooke, Brandon P. Long, and Danny S. Hood, each of whom were registered representatives of a broker dealer (collectively, the “Representatives”), fraudulently induced federal employees to rollover significant funds from their federal retirement accounts, referred to as Thrift Savings Plan (“TSP”) accounts, into variable annuity products promoted under the banner of an entity called Keystone Capital Partners, Inc. d/b/a Federal Employee Benefits Counselors. FINRA reports that, according to the SEC, motivated by the prospect of high commissions associated with the variable annuities, the Representatives targeted federal employees, age 59 ½ and over, who had significant TSP account holdings that could be rolled over on a tax-free basis into variable annuities held in qualified plans at annuity carriers.
FINRA also reports that, according to the SEC, defendants employed several tactics calculated to mislead federal employees into believing that Defendants and their recommended investment (that is, a variable annuity) were affiliated with or approved by the federal government. For example, FINRA reports that according to the SEC, despite the fact that their recommended investments had no connection to the TSP, the Representatives, in recommending this investment: (a) made misleading comparisons between their recommended investment and the life annuity offered through the TSP by omitting key information or falsely describing the actual fee structure and surrender fees related to their recommended investment; (b) used an eagle-encircled insignia on other documents given to customers and on their website that resembled the official seal of various agencies of the federal government; and (c) used a name, Federal Employee Benefits Counselors, that insinuated that they were affiliated with the federal government while obscuring the fact that they were associated with a broker dealer.
If you lost any money on investments with Christopher Laws while Christopher Laws was employed with LPL Financial, LLC and/or BCG Securities, Inc. you may be able to recover your losses from LPL Financial, LLC and/or BCG Securities, Inc. This is because LPL Financial, LLC and BCG Securities, Inc. had a duty to supervise Christopher Laws.
If you lost money on investments with Christopher Laws and believe the investments may have been unsuitable or otherwise improper for you, we would like to discuss the possibility of your retaining our firm to represent you in an arbitration action against LPL Financial, LLC and/or BCG Securities, Inc. concerning Christopher Laws’ conduct. There is no charge for an evaluation of your case. Further, we handle our cases on a contingency fee basis. This means that unless we recover money for you, we charge no attorney’s fee. Unless you recover any money, you pay us nothing, not even the costs and expenses which the firm will advance on your behalf.
Kalju Nekvasil, Esq., formerly regional counsel with the NASD, now known as FINRA, has practiced in this area of the law for more than 35 years. Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A. has recovered more than $300 million on behalf of victimized investors. If you lost money on investments with Christopher Laws and would like your case evaluated by a securities attorney (again, there is no charge for an evaluation and all cases are handled on a purely contingency fee basis), please contact us.
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