At the beginning of most FINRA OTRs, the examiner reads from a script of sorts, outlining some of the basic rules governing the proceeding. One of the things the script calls for is an express acknowledgement by the witness that he or she is testifying pursuant to Rule 8210, and that, as a result, a
investigation
In AML World, The Need To File A SAR Can, Apparently, Be Too Obvious To Ignore
By Alan Wolper on
If you’re reading this, then you undoubtedly already know that FINRA and SEC are, simply, AML crazy. Rightly or wrongly, they are both focusing more than ever on broker-dealers’ fulfillment of their supervisory obligation to be sensitive to the laundry list of red flags first articulated in a Notice to Members back in 2002 that…
The Long Arm Of The Law Has Nothing On FINRA’s Reach
By Alan Wolper on
So, you’re a registered rep, working for a broker-dealer. Necessarily, you are registered with and subject to the oversight of FINRA, not a particularly happy proposition. But at least you can take comfort in the fact that while FINRA may have the right to stick its nose into your securities business, what you do away…
FINRA’s 2016 Examination Priorities Letter: Focus On “Firm Culture”
By Heidi VonderHeide on
Yesterday, FINRA released its annual Examination Priorities Letter in which it set forth the top issues that would guide its examinations in the coming year. Running 13 pages in length (while complaining about having to be so “brief”), FINRA set forth some of the “many areas of potential concern” it expects to encounter this year.…
The Ongoing Puzzle Of Ongoing Due Diligence
By Alan Wolper on
I am currently in the midst of a FINRA examination that is largely focused on the adequacy of the due diligence that my broker-dealer client conducted of a private placement. What is puzzling about the exam is that FINRA is not just interested in the due diligence that was conducted prior to effecting any sales…
To Mediate or Not: Arbitration v. Enforcement
By Chris Seps on
I recently had two clients, both respondents in pending matters – ask me the same question in the same day: should I mediate this case? The answers I gave them differed dramatically, not just because the facts of each case were very different, but because one case was a customer arbitration, where we are defending…
The Mystery Why FINRA “Close-Out” Letters Are Inadmissible in Arbitrations
By Alan Wolper on
Posted in Arbitration, FINRA
Anyone who’s handled FINRA arbitrations is well familiar with panelists who regularly respond to evidentiary objections by overruling them, but with the admonition that they will only give whatever weight, if any, to the evidence that they deem appropriate. While that can sometimes be frustrating, it is understandable. The Federal Arbitration Act, and the many…