Navigate the complexities of financial advising with AdvisorLaw's Industry Insights. Our experts provide actionable analysis on critical areas impacting your practice, including the latest FINRA and SEC/state regulations for brokers, RIAs, and IARs, the nuances of dual registration, strategic insights into Mergers & Acquisitions, evolving enforcement trends, practical regulatory compliance strategies, and effective succession planning. Stay informed, compliant, and positioned for growth with AdvisorLaw's perspectives.
Advisor Prevails – Award/Judgment Customer Dispute Expunged
Twenty years into his career, a California advisor sought to expunge the one customer dispute on his otherwise-pristine record. While seeking expungement of a typical customer dispute can be difficult,...
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Advisor Back In Action With A Clean Record After Termination
A 12-year veteran advisor in Boston spent the past three years unable to secure employment in the financial services industry due to a Form U5 termination disclosure. The firm published...
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California Advisor Removes 20-Year-Old, Settled Dispute
Contact Us Today! *If you're under FINRA or SEC investigation, or if you have a meritless disclosure on your BrokerCheck, CRD, or IAPD record, call us right now at (303)...
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FINRA Disputes & U5 Terminations FINRA Expungement & Arbitration FINRA, SEC, State & CFP Board Enforcement IRS Tax Liens & Disclosures
Disclosing Tax & Financial Events On The Form U4
In recent years, FINRA has consistently maintained that it views timely and accurate Form U4 reporting to be critical, and it has voiced its intent to take action against advisors...
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Advisor Expunges Three Customer Disputes, Clearing His Record
A Texas-based advisor who had been in the industry for 15 years had three customer dispute disclosures involving variable annuities on his public record. He engaged AdvisorLaw and sought expungement...
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FINRA Disputes & U5 Terminations FINRA Expungement & Arbitration FINRA, SEC, State & CFP Board Enforcement
Preparing To Sue A Broker-Dealer
Before seeking to sue a broker-dealer, it’s important that you take a step back and ask yourself a few questions. If you choose to move forward with a suit, it’s...
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FINRA Disputes & U5 Terminations FINRA Expungement & Arbitration FINRA, SEC, State & CFP Board Enforcement
Never Settle for Firm Representation During FINRA Arbitration
You have recently been named as a respondent in a FINRA arbitration filed by a customer against you and your firm. What should you do? The answer is simple: hire...
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Should your RIA be using more than one custodian?
In 2020, the number of RIA firms hit a record 13,880, with the collective AUM hitting a record $110 trillion. As RIA firms grow, more and more firms with over...
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Three Key Steps to Follow When Buying a Financial Advisor Book of Business
If you’re considering buying a financial advisor book of business to expand your client base, there are three key steps that will help you to identify the right firm for...
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FINRA Disputes & U5 Terminations FINRA Expungement & Arbitration FINRA, SEC, State & CFP Board Enforcement RIA Compliance
Customer Dispute Expungement Through FINRA Arbitration
When a broker-dealer files a Form U4 or U5 with the Central Registration Depository (CRD), customer disputes, terminations, and other disclosures become part of an advisor’s public record and appear...
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Advisor Receives U5 Termination Disclosure Due to COVID-19
*If you're under FINRA or SEC investigation, or if you have a meritless disclosure on your BrokerCheck, CRD, or IAPD record, call us right now at (303) 952-4025 or click here to talk with...
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How Advisors Can (And Should) Face Employment Disputes
The vast majority of rep agreements dictate that disputes that arise between the advisor and employer must be handled via a specified arbitration forum. That forum can be either FINRA’s...
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FINRA Disputes & U5 Terminations FINRA Expungement & Arbitration FINRA, SEC, State & CFP Board Enforcement IRS Tax Liens & Disclosures
What Triggers a FINRA Inquiry?
FINRA inquiries are primarily triggered by disclosures on the Forms U4 and U5. Many of these disclosures stem from allegations made by a customer or broker-dealer. Some disclosures are financial,...
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VUL-Related Complaint Expunged After A Decade Of Disclosure
A financial industry veteran based in Atlanta wanted to remove a customer complaint regarding a variable universal life (VUL) insurance policy that the customer had kept in place for nearly...
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Financial Advisor Succession Planning: Your Complete Guide to a Smooth Exit
A recent study indicated that less than one-third of advisors age 55 and older have not identified a successor for their practice, and more than half of advisors over age...
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Advisor Restores Record After Alleged Firm Violation
A financial advisor from the west coast was terminated for an alleged violation of a firm policy. During her tenure with the firm, she was never disciplined and consistently received...
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Hybrid Broker Expunges 2 Customer Disputes From BrokerCheck
A financial advisor from New Jersey, who has been in the industry for over two decades, sought to clean up two false customer disputes on his BrokerCheck profile and CRD...
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Compliance Solutions For Small RIAs
Most RIAs start out as an exercise in independence — advisors want less bureaucracy, more payout, and better choices for their clients. Starting one’s own RIA becomes the solution, but...
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FINRA Disputes & U5 Terminations FINRA Expungement & Arbitration FINRA, SEC, State & CFP Board Enforcement
FINRA Limits Advisors’ Right to Arbitration & Disclosure Expungement
FINRA continues to limit advisors’ right to be heard regarding their role in customer disclosures published to their CRD and BrokerCheck records. Broker-dealers are required to report any customer dispute to...
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Repeat Client Expunges Two Remaining Complaints
Recently, AdvisorLaw successfully helped a local securities broker, who has been in the business since the 1980s, expunge two customer disputes. Already sold on the value of cleaning up his...
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