elderly investors

Malecki Law Attorneys Spread Awareness About Elder Exploitation

October 27, 2015 | Malecki Law Team

The Securities Fraud attorneys at Malecki Law today visited the Hudson Guild Senior Center to educate members of their Naturally Occuring Retirement Community (NORC) about Elder Financial Exploitation. Adam Nicolazzo and Robert Van de Veire addressed a group of 15-20 senior members of that community about investment fraud, common red flag signs of fraud, and how to protect their retirement income and nest eggs.

According to FINRA, the elderly lose approximately $ 2.9 billion every year due to fraud. The Malecki Law attorneys try to create awareness within communities of elders about dangers of elder financial exploitation and empower them to take legal recourse if they are victimized. The seniors get educated about regulatory authorities like FINRA and SEC, and tools like BrokerCheck available to them. The Malecki Law team used real life examples of Ponzi and affinity schemers, who are known to have preyed on the elderly, to help senior members understand the realities of financial fraud and that it comes in many forms. They also offer free consultation and case evaluation in these sessions.

Malecki Law continues to work towards positive changes in elder law within the securities industry and Jenice Malecki recently participated in a panel on Dangers of Diminished Capacity at the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association’s (PIABA) annual conference.

Jenice L. Malecki Moderated A Panel Today at PIABA

October 23, 2015 | Malecki Law Team

Ms. Jenice Malecki was a moderator today at Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association’s (PIABA) panel on ‘The Danger of Diminished Capacity, Ethics as a Broker and for the Lawyer.’ The seminar discussed what diminished capacity is, important studies on dealing with clients with diminished capacity as financial advisors and lawyers, and elder financial abuse and privacy law issues. The panel moderated by Ms. Malecki consisted of distinguished members of the financial and legal community including the President of the Investor Trust Protection, a former SEC attorney and an elder lawyer.

According to FINRA’s estimates, the elderly lose approximately $ 2.9 billion every year due to fraud and an average of 10,000 Americans will turn 65 over the next 15 years. Senior investors with diminished capacity are more at risk of falling victim to financial fraud than other investors and the financial industry should fully utilize its power to prevent substantial economic harm to elderly clients. Ms. Malecki has also co-authored an article for PIABA titled Protecting Clients with Diminished Capacity In The Securities Industry: It’s Tricky.

This panel is part of PIABA’s 24^th Annual Meeting held in Florida from Oct 21- 23, 2015.

New FINRA Rule Designed To Help Protect Seniors And Other Vulnerable Investors

September 23, 2015 | Malecki Law Team

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has just approved steps to help protect senior citizens and other potentially vulnerable adults from financial exploitation and abuse. Referred to by some as a“pause rule,” the proposal would permit brokerage firms to place a temporary hold (or “pause”) a disbursement from a customer’s account if they believed that the customer was being exploited. After pausing the disbursement, the firm would contact the customer’s “trusted contact” to notify them of the suspicious activity. While the new rule would not require firms to place a temporary hold on disbursements, it would provide them with a safe harbor if and when the firm did pause suspicious activity.

With the baby boomer generation at or near retirement age, the timing for FINRA could not be better. FINRA’s CEO specifically referenced the fact that for the next 15 years, roughly 10,000 Americans will be turning 65 each day.

Unfortunately, senior citizens are targeted specifically by financial scammers. Seniors typically have large amounts of liquid assets in the form of retirement savings. When coupled with the potential for diminishing mental abilities, this means an easy target and potentially big payday for a con artist with bad intentions.

BROKER REPORT: Churning Complaints Regarding Dwarka Persaud

August 18, 2015 | Malecki Law Team

The securities fraud attorneys are interested in hearing from investors with complaints involving Dwarka Persaud. Per his BrokerCheck Report, maintained by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), Mr. Persaud is a registered stock broker with Buckman, Buckman & Reid, based out of Shrewsbury, NJ.

Mr. Persaud’s BrokerCheck Report indicates that he has been the subject of at least six customer complaints. At the center of several of these complaints was churning and excessive commissions. Churning is the frequent,over-trading of a customer’s account by the broker to generate high commissions paid by the customer, benefitting the broker and the firm. Churning is against the law and industry regulations.

Mr. Persaud is reportedly the subject of at least two currently pending customer complaints, each alleging and “unauthorized trading.” One of these complaints also alleges churning. The other alleges that the unauthorized trading caused more than $45,000 in losses.

Massachusetts Charges Securities America and Broker Barry Armstrong over Misleading Radio Ads Aimed at Seniors

July 28, 2015 | Malecki Law Team

Per reports, William Galvin, the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, recently filed complaints against Securities America and its broker Barry Armstrong over allegedly misleading advertisements that targeted vulnerable seniors.

Securities America allegedly participated in and failed to supervise Mr. Armstrong, in conducting a misleading radio advertising campaign. In what has been described as a “bait and switch” technique, Mr. Armstrong reportedly ran the Alzheimer’s disease ads as a pretext to obtain the contact information needed to sell another service.

Mr. Armstrong, who hosts his own radio show, was said to have run ads on various AM radio stations that instructed listeners to call him for free information on Alzheimer’s disease. Once listeners called in, their contact information was allegedly used to advertise financial services. According to reports, these deceptive ads were submitted to Securities America for review and were all approved by the firm.

What is Elder Abuse?

June 17, 2015 | Malecki Law Team

As the U.S. baby boomers look toward retirement, a larger percentage of the population will become senior-aged individuals who will have a substantial amount of savings that may be used to fund investments. It is more important than ever to keep in mind that everyone needs to take as much care over their retirement nest egg now as they did when they were diligently saving. The New Jersey Bureau of Securities has issued a new release to commemorate World Elder Abuse Awareness Day and remind senior-aged investors to be wary of financial fraud.

In the news release, the NJ Bureau noted that one in five Americans over the age of 65 are victims of financial fraud, making it one of the fastest growing forms of elder abuse. However, the news release noted that anyone over than 55, whether working or retired, may be viewed as a potential target for financial fraud.

The NJ Bureau of Securities listed several types of financial fraud to be careful of, including: