A little over a year ago, the SEC announced a stunning settlement with Merrill Lynch regarding its violation of SEC Rule 15c3-3, commonly known as the “Customer Protection Rule.” This is an important rule whose name gives away its purpose: it is designed to ensure that if a broker-dealer ever fails, customer assets can be
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Dawn Bennett Redefines “Spirited Defense” In Her SEC Case
By UB Greensfelder on
This one belongs in the “truth is stranger than fiction” category. By now, you are probably familiar with the exploits of Dawn Bennett, former hostess of her radio show, “Financial Myth Busting.” She was the one who the SEC permanently barred last year after she elected not to appear at her administrative hearing (after her…
The Head-In-The-Sand Approach To Supervision: A Primer
By UB Greensfelder on
There’s a claimant’s lawyer I’ve litigated against several times who is very good at his job, and who I personally like very much. Part of the reason for his success is that he is very engaging, so even when he utterly lacks any decent facts on which to base his claim – which is often…
FINRA’s Board Acts To Fix The Problem…That FINRA Created
By UB Greensfelder on
So, as you undoubtedly recall, in its typical reactive approach to regulation, FINRA has expressed concern – after having concerns expressed to it by others (none of whom are actually from the securities industry, of course) – about (1) the high number of registered reps working in the industry with spotty disciplinary records, and (2)…
Let The Sun Shine On FINRA’s Office Of Disciplinary Affairs
By UB Greensfelder on
Back in the old days, back when it was still NASD and it bore some reasonable semblance of a true self-regulatory organization, the important decisions relating to the Enforcement process – the decision to issue a complaint, the decision to settle a case, and the decision in litigated matters that actually went to hearing –…
FINRA’s Annual Report: I Wish It Was Fake News
By UB Greensfelder on
Posted in Annual Report, FINRA
This past week, FINRA very, very quietly released its Annual Report for 2016. Too quietly, as they say in the movies. No press release. No press conference. No media attention at all, hardly. As President Trump just asked about State Election Commissioners who refused to respond to a request from his Election Fraud taskforce for…
What Else Is New? FINRA Skates Despite “Massive” Failure To Produce Documents
By UB Greensfelder on
Let’s play pretend. Can you imagine what FINRA would do to a respondent broker-dealer in an Enforcement action that announced on Day Five of the hearing – i.e., during the “final phase” of the hearing – that – whoops! – it had forgotten to produce certain documents that it should have produced eight months before…
Don’t Let The Revolving Door Hit You In The Butt
By UB Greensfelder on
There has been a lot of talk, especially given the relatively recent change in the Executive Branch in Washington, about the problem with the “revolving door,” a concept so wide in scope that it actually has its own Wikipedia page. It is defined to be the “movement of personnel between roles as legislators and…
Open The Pod Bay Doors: Computers Are Here To Take Your Job
By UB Greensfelder on
I read recently that in the not-too-distant future, the practice of law by actual human beings will become a rarity, as computers will take over those jobs, because they will be able to do the work better, cheaper and faster. Speaking as a lawyer, I find that to be a somewhat troubling prospect. I mean,…
Rogue Brokers: The Numbers Do Not Tell The Whole Story
By UB Greensfelder on
Not too long ago, I blogged a couple of times about the amount of attention that is suddenly being paid to the number of registered representatives with disciplinary histories working for FINRA member firms, i.e., the so-called recidivists (who used to be called “rogue reps”). Among the complaints I voiced was the fact that while…