Private Securities Transactions

Lunick Jean Dorleus – Florida Securities Investment Club and Unapproved Outside Business Activity FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: March 5, 2014 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

South Florida Broker/Dealer and Account Executive Investment Club and Unapproved Outside Business and Negligent Supervision FINRA Arbitration, Litigation and Probate Estate Attorney.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) is a self-regulatory authority assigned the responsibility, by the Securities and Exchange Commission, to license, regulate and discipline securities broker/dealers and their employees, including account executives. In the event that FINRA elects to institute an enforcement action, firms and licensed individuals have the responsibility to reflect such action on their U-4 and/or U-5 filings, which can be viewed on the FINRA website under the broker-check section of the site or by viewing the monthly disciplinary information also provided on the FINRA site.

The monthly disciplinary information is referenced on the FINRA site generally in alphabetical order. This post relates to the following company or individuals. If the reader would like to review the entire FINRA release or the broker-check information concerning this matter, you can follow these highlighted links:

Michael Andrew DeRosa – Florida Unregistered and Selling Away Promissory Note FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: March 5, 2014 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

South Florida Broker/Dealer and Account Executive Selling Away and Unregistered Promissory Note and Negligent Supervision FINRA Arbitration, Litigation and Probate Estate Attorney.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) is a self-regulatory authority assigned the responsibility, by the Securities and Exchange Commission, to license, regulate and discipline securities broker/dealers and their employees, including account executives. In the event that FINRA elects to institute an enforcement action, firms and licensed individuals have the responsibility to reflect such action on their U-4 and/or U-5 filings, which can be viewed on the FINRA website under the broker-check section of the site or by viewing the monthly disciplinary information also provided on the FINRA site.

The monthly disciplinary information is referenced on the FINRA site generally in alphabetical order. This post relates to the following company or individuals. If the reader would like to review the entire FINRA release or the broker-check information concerning this matter, you can follow these highlighted links:

Donald Richard Dahn – Florida Financial Abuse, Misappropriation and Unauthorized Loan FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: February 28, 2014 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

Florida Broker/Dealer and Account Executive Negligent Supervision and Account Executive Financial Misappropriation, Unauthorized Loan and Elder Abuse FINRA Arbitration, Litigation and Probate Estate Attorney.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) is a self-regulatory authority assigned the responsibility, by the Securities and Exchange Commission, to license, regulate and discipline securities broker/dealers and their employees, including account executives. In the event that FINRA elects to institute an enforcement action, firms and licensed individuals have the responsibility to reflect such action on their U-4 and/or U-5 filings, which can be viewed on the FINRA website under the broker-check section of the site or by viewing the monthly disciplinary information also provided on the FINRA site.

The monthly disciplinary information is referenced on the FINRA site generally in alphabetical order. This post relates to the following company or individuals. If the reader would like to review the entire FINRA release or the broker-check information concerning this matter, you can follow these highlighted links:

South Florida Oil and Gas Suitability, Fraud and Misrepresentation FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: February 28, 2014 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

South Florida Oil and Gas Suitability, Fraud and Misrepresentation FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) is a self-regulatory authority assigned the responsibility, by the Securities and Exchange Commission, to license, regulate and discipline securities broker/dealers and their employees, including account executives. In the event that FINRA elects to institute an enforcement action, firms and licensed individuals have the responsibility to reflect such action on their U-4 and/or U-5 filings, which can be viewed on the FINRA website under the broker-check section of the site or by viewing the monthly disciplinary information also provided on the FINRA site.

The monthly disciplinary information is referenced on the FINRA site generally in alphabetical order. This post relates to the following company or individuals. If the reader would like to review the entire FINRA release or the broker-check information concerning this matter, you can follow these highlighted links:

Oil and Gas Limited Partnership and Oil and Gas Offering Fraud, Misrepresentation and Mismanagement Litigation and Arbitration Attorney

Published on: February 8, 2014 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

Oil and Gas Limited Partnerships and Oil and Gas Offering Fraud, Misrepresentation and Mismanagement – South Florida, including Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfiled Beach, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Lake Worth and West Palm Beach, Litigation and Arbitration Attorney

An oil and gas limited partnership is legally set up using the same format as any type of limited partnership. It is created by filing articles of limited partnership or its equivalent in the state of its domicile. For example, Florida Statute, Chapter 620 governs the legal requirements that must be followed in the formation, operation and dissolution of the limited partnership, whether it is engaged in the oil and gas business or not. This post is limited to a general discussion of an oil and gas limited partnership.

An oil and gas limited partnership is made up of one or more general partners and one or more limited partners. Generally, it is structured to find, extract, and market commercial quantities of oil and natural gas. These types of investments are usually offered by prospectus, in the case of a public offering, and by a private offering memorandum, in the case of a private offering of securities. In either offering document, it is important to consider, among other things, who is making the offering, which brings to the forefront such items as experience, prior success and financial stability. The next important section of the document relates to the “risk” factor section of the document. Usually, in bold type there is a phrase such as “this offering involves a high degree of risk and should be considered only by those investors who can stand to lose their entire investment.”

FAQ’s Warrants – Florida Securities and Investment Fraud, Misrepresentation and Breach of Fiduciary Duty FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: January 3, 2014 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

FAQ’s Warrants – Miami, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, Deerfield Beach, Lighthouse Point and Boca Raton, Florida FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney:

A warrant is a type of security, usually issued in conjunction with common or preferred stock, that entitles the holder to buy a proportionate amount of common stock at a specified price, usually higher than the market price at the time of issuance, for a period of years or to perpetuity.

Many times warrants are included as part of units issued in private placements. The warrants are included as part of the units as a “kicker” to the investor to take on the risk associated with investing in the private placement. Conversely, if the warrants are exercised, they provide the issuer with additional unsolicited funds.

Private Equity – Private Investment – Private Security – Florida Fraud, Misrepresentation and Mismanagement FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: September 25, 2013 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

Private Equity, Private Placement and Private Investment – South Florida Fraud, Misrepresentation and Mismanagement State and Federal Litigation and FINRA Arbitration Attorney:

The Securities and Exchange Commission recently charged the former president of a purported private equity real estate firm based in San Bernardino, Calif., with defrauding nearly 500 investors who purchased promissory notes under the false premise that they were secured by specific properties or other collateral.

The SEC alleges that Larry Polhill used his company American Pacific Financial Corporation (APFC) to buy and sell real estate and distressed assets, and he offered investors the opportunity to invest in the company through unregistered notes that would yield them interest payments of 5 to 17 percent per year. However, the collateral that Polhill and APFC claimed made the investments secure was often non-existent or otherwise impaired. The properties underlying the investments were sometimes even sold without notice to investors. When APFC eventually filed for bankruptcy, it named the investors as unsecured creditors who were owed nearly $160 million. None of Polhill’s investment offerings were registered with the SEC.

South Florida Money Manager Fraud, Mismanagement and Breach of Fiduciary Duty FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: September 17, 2013 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

Securities and Exchange Commission Charges Purported Money Manager in New York Who Schemed Investors and Lied to Commission Examiners

The Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission) recently charged the owner of a New York-based investment advisory firm with defrauding investors while grossly exaggerating the amount of assets under his management.

The SEC alleges that Fredrick D. Scott of Brooklyn, N.Y., registered his firm ACI Capital Group as an investment adviser and then embarked on a series of fraudulent schemes targeting individual investors and small businesses. Scott repeatedly touted ACI’s registration under the securities laws and falsely claimed the firm’s assets under management to be as high as $3.7 billion to bolster his credibility when offering too-good-to-be-true investment opportunities. As Scott solicited funds from investors after promising them very high rates of return, he simply stole their money almost as soon as they deposited it with ACI. Scott paid no returns to investors and illegally used their money to fund such personal expenses as his children’s private school tuition, air travel and hotels, department store purchases, and several thousand dollars in dental bills.

Fraudulent Promissory Note Offering – South Florida Securities and Investment Fraud FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: September 10, 2013 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

SEC Files Civil Injunctive Action Against Alleged Perpetrator and Unregistered Broker in Fraudulent Promissory Note Offering

Recently, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil injunctive action in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado against Brian G. Elrod for allegedly conducting a fraudulent offering of promissory notes for which Nova Dean Pack acted as an unregistered broker. Elrod and Pack reside in Buffalo Creek, Colorado and Highland, California, respectively.

The Complaint alleges that, from at least March 2009 through November 2009, Elrod and Pack raised approximately $2 million from 12 investors who invested in high-yield promissory notes issued by CFS Holding Company LLC (“CFS”), a Colorado company owned and managed by Elrod. According to the Complaint, Elrod told investors that their investments were secured and guaranteed and would generate annual returns ranging from 12% to 24%. According to the Complaint, Elrod further represented to investors that the proceeds from their promissory notes would be used to expand a group of financial services companies owned and managed by Elrod. The Complaint alleges that the foregoing representations, among others, were false and misleading when made, and that Elrod, rather than use investor money for legitimate business purposes, improperly used most of the investor funds to make substantial payments to himself and family members and to pay for personal expenses, to pay Pack significant commissions for referring investors, and to make interest payments back to investors. According to the Complaint, the CFS note offering was not registered with the Commission, and Pack was not an associated person of a registered broker or dealer at the time he participated in the CFS note offering.

False and Misleading Radio and Television Broker/Dealer Advertising – South Florida Direct (Alternative) Investment and Private Placement Fraud FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

Published on: September 1, 2013 | By Russell L. Forkey, P.A.

Solicitation of Investment Clients by Broker/Dealers and Investment Objectives Through the Use of Radio and Television Programing – South Florida False and Misleading Advertising FINRA Arbitration and Litigation Attorney

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) is a self-regulatory authority assigned the responsibility, by the Securities and Exchange Commission, to license, regulate and discipline securities broker/dealers and their employees, including account executives. In the event that FINRA elects to institute and enforcement action, firms and licensed individuals have the responsibility to reflect such action of their U-4 and/or U-5 filings, which can be viewed on the FINRA website under the broker-check section of the site or by viewing the monthly disciplinary information also provided on the FINRA site.

The monthly disciplinary information is referenced on the site generally in alphabetical order. This post relates to the following company or individuals. If the reader would like to review the entire FINRA release or the broker-check information concerning this matter, you can follow these highlighted links: