Many investors mistakenly believe they have no redress for suffering financial loss due to bad investments. However, a stock loss attorney in Tampa can explain to you that in many cases, you may have a claim against a financial advisor, stock broker, or some other professional that you relied upon.
Investment professionals are held to some standard of due care. As a result, if they provide you fraudulent information or reckless advice, you may be able to recover damages. To learn how you can recover in your case, you will want to talk to a Stock Loss Attorney in Tampa at Savage Villoch Law, PLCC.
There are many causes of action that an investor may have against a financial advisor or financial professional. Some common causes of action that a Stock Loss Attorney in Tampa has experience with include:
To hold oneself out as a professional or advisor, the investment professional should have some reasonable knowledge about the financial markets and your needs. For example, aggressive trading for someone near retirement may be careless and inappropriate. So may a complete failure to diversify a portfolio be negligent.
Most advisers and investment professionals owe their clients a fiduciary duty. In other words, they are supposed to look out for your best interests. When the professional starts putting his or her own interest or the interest of some other third party ahead of you, they may be breaching their fiduciary duty to you.
Professionals that deliberately misrepresent a transaction or investment may be engaging in negligent misrepresentations or fraudulent misrepresentations.
Your investment professional is expected to act in your best interests. The professional may engage in misconduct by engaging in unauthorized transactions, subjecting you to fraud, or engaging in illegal activities like Ponzi schemes.
It’s critical that you understand the rights and obligations your stockbroker has to you. A Tampa stock fraud lawyer can review your case and help you make informed decisions and, if need be, aggressively pursue actions for fraud and negligence on your behalf.
When you entrust your investment assets to a stockbroker to manage your investments, an agency relationship is created. Your stockbroker acts as your agent in managing your portfolio. In many instances this is a fiduciary duty owed to you. It means that your stockbroker must put your interest ahead of their own interests. As your attorney at a Tampa stock fraud attorney firm can explain, we believe that your stockbroker owes you a duty of competence, prudent investment of your hard earned money and accountability. If you suspect your stockbroker has failed in any of his or her legally enforceable duties, call an attorney as soon as possible. The sooner you act, the more options you may have available to you.
When you engage the services of a Tampa stock fraud lawyer, your attorney can aggressively pursue a fraud or negligence action on your behalf. Your stockbroker may be liable for negligence if he failed to act in a reasonable manner with regard to your investment money. The stockbroker’s actions may rise to the level of fraud if he or she engaged in willful misconduct. One of the first things your attorney may do is to review your portfolio structure and losses in light of your unique investor profile. Your attorney can review the accounting in detail and help advise you about your next steps toward financial recovery.
If litigation is necessary, a skilled attorney can aggressively pursue an action against the individual broker as well as the brokerage firm as circumstances dictate. The longer you wait to act, the fewer options you may have to seek a remedy. Don’t wait until it is too late. Have an attorney with a proven track record of aggressive pursuit of your claims and many years of experience review – your case to see if you may have a valid claim.
Listen below on what stock brokers can do wrong to warrant legal action:
While it would not be fair to characterize all stock brokers as unscrupulous, there are those who engage in tactics that amount to broker misconduct. If you believe that you have been a victim of practices that were less than honorable, and which caused financial loss to you, you may feel there is nothing that can be done. This is not the case. Our stock loss lawyer in Tampa may be able to help you successfully sue your broker if you have a legitimate claim.
Risk management is an area of investing for which, unfortunately, the majority of brokers are not knowledgeable. Many brokers simply don’t know how to measure risk. It is important to keep in mind that what is a tolerable risk for one investor is not acceptable for another. Consequently, whether an investment is suitable depends in part upon the situation of the investor. Certain investments are never a good risk, but most depend upon the risk that the investor can afford to make. An older investor, for instance, who does not have a large portfolio may be wise not to invest in stocks that have higher risk, because he does not have the time in life to recoup a loss. A broker should not recommend extremely risky investments. Moreover, unsuitable investments can also involve a portfolio that does not have adequate diversification. An unscrupulous investor might recommend a risky investment simply in order to enjoy the commission. The broker might also engage in “churning,” which is excessive trading in order to boost commissions. An investor who believes he has been victimized by such practices will need a forensic expert to analyze the trades made on his behalf. Your stock fraud lawyer will probably use such an expert for this purpose.
Many brokers make trades on behalf of an investor without first securing permission. While he might argue that you, the investor, in effect agreed to such a practice by not objecting at the time, you may have a claim if this occurs. If the broker fails to disclose risk inherent to an investment prior to a purchase, you may have a claim as well. However, you will need to both prove that the misrepresentation occurred, and that it you would have taken a different investment course had you been made aware of the true risks.
There are numerous other types of misconduct that an unscrupulous investor might engage in, such as selling securities and other kinds of investments that are not within the broker’s area of expertise, purchasing for his account before buying for yours, and forgery. Finally, some brokers simply fail to supervise a client’s portfolio adequately.
Savage Villoch Law, PLLC in Tampa, Florida, a team of experienced and highly qualified stock loss lawyers, provides legal services to stock brokers and brokerage firms. We have a team of well qualified Tampa stock broker representation lawyers to solve your stock related legal issues.
We handle a host of licensing, regulatory and other general service matters, including:
For brokerage and brokerage firm related legal issues, entrust your case to a skilled Tampa stock broker representation lawyer. Our attorneys have experience in a host of business and regulatory matters. We can help ensure your business policies comply with state and federal regulations and discuss your options in the event you have a dispute.
Our Tampa stock broker representation lawyers understand the intricate rules and regulations imposed on stock brokers and brokerage firms by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). As FINRA licensing is required of all brokers, it’s important to ensure that the licensing application is made properly. Our firm has experience dealing with licensing rejections and can assist with resolution. In addition, our attorneys can provide expert counsel on continued FINRA compliance necessary for continued business operations.
Our firm also has significant experience dealing with business litigation. If your dispute cannot be resolved, our attorneys can help you understand your next steps. An alternative dispute resolution process may be desirable such as mediation or arbitration. Your attorney can discuss each and help you understand whether your case is appropriate to submit to ADR.
In the event your dispute cannot be resolved outside the courtroom, our firm can aggressively pursue your case in court. For most regulatory complaints, time is of the essence as the law requires strict response deadlines. Therefore, it’s critical that you seek sound legal counsel as soon as you suspect you may have a dispute. If you receive written notice of a complaint, bring it to your attorney right away.
To discuss the specific details of your case with an experienced attorney, you should contact the law firm of Savage Villoch Law, PLLC. Call us at 813-200-0013 to learn more about how we can help you.