Ft. Lauderdale, Fl., — The law firm of Securities Fraud Attorney Mark A. Tepper has filed claim against Wachovia Securities, Inc., for allegedly disregarding that a retired Dade County court clerk needed her retirement lump sum payment to supplement her social security and the remainder of her State pension.
In the claim filed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Tepper, a former New York Assistant Attorney General and Chief Trial Counsel at the Bureau of Investor Protection and Securities, alleges that a Wachovia Bank employee directed his client, to speak with a Wachovia financial advisor, instead of opening an IRA account and placing her retirement funds into a money market account.
The claim contends that the Wachovia Bank employee “followed Wachovia’s undisclosed policy” in making the recommendation that the retiree speak with a Wachovia financial adviser and “did not disclose Wachovia Bank’s policy that, on information and belief, its employees were encouraged to refer the Bank’s CD customers and depositors to Wachovia financial advisors – which provided more fees and commissions for its sister corporation, Wachovia Securities,” the claim alleges.
The claim further alleges that the Wachovia financial advisor misled the retiree and took advantage of her lack of knowledge and experience, changing her original stated investment objectives from ‘Income with Moderate Risk’ to ‘Growth and Income,’ “a more aggressive mix – exposing her to too much risk for her financial situation and needs,” the claim alleges.
The dramatic change, made only 2 months after the original form was signed, without any apparent change in her financial situation and needs, was an obvious “red flag,” the claim alleges.
“Wachovia Securities, Inc., did not act ‘vigorously,’ as required by the SEC, to contact the retiree about this ‘indication of wrongdoing,’ and instead allowed the financial adviser to exploit the retiree,” the claim alleges.
About Mark A. Tepper, P.A. (www.MarkTepper.com) Attorney Mark Tepper has earned the reputation of “Investor Advocate” while practicing law for over 30 years and representing investors in criminal and civil actions. A member of the Florida, New York and California Bars he is AV(R)-rated, the highest rating of lawyers in the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory.
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