Investment Loss Myths: Fact vs. Fiction
MYTH: My investment losses are several years old, and the statute of limitations has run its course.
FACT: Time restrictions for filing an arbitration claim vary depending on state law and the location of the individual client. Our experienced lawyers can evaluate the strength of your claims and help put you on a path to financial recovery.
MYTH: I am just one person. I couldn't possibly go up against a large and powerful investment firm and win.
FACT: Investors often bring claims against investment firms and win. Since our founding in 1991, Maddox Hargett & Caruso P.C. has established a national reputation for successfully representing victims who've suffered financial losses because of the unethical and negligent financial advice of investment firms, insurance companies, brokerage firms and other entities.
Many of these cases have been against some of Wall Street's biggest and most prominent firms, including: Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Solomon Smith Barney, Citigroup, Wachovia Securities, Prudential Securities, UBS, A.G. Edwards, Edward Jones, and Bear Stearns, among others.
MYTH: I just discovered losses of my deceased parent; I can't do anything about it now.
FACT: Again, statutes of limitations are contingent on state law and the location of the client. Your best course of action is to contact a reputable securities arbitration attorney who can help determine the eligibility of your claims.
MYTH: I was never told nor did I thoroughly understand certain investments that, as it turns out, had exposure to mortgage-related products such as collateral debt obligations. I can't do anything now.
FACT: Following the housing market crash of 2008, thousands of investors have come forth with claims that they put their money into investments that they believed to be low-risk, cash alternatives based on the recommendation of their broker.
In reality, many of these financial products were high-risk investments, whose assets were linked to risky mortgage securities. As a client of a brokerage firm, you are owed certain duties. This includes accurate disclosure regarding the potential risks of an investment.
If you are a victim of investment fraud, please contact us. A member of our securities fraud team will help you determine if there is a valid claim for recovery.
MYTH: It costs a lot of money to file an arbitration claim.
FACT: In most instances, Maddox Hargett & Caruso, P.C represents investors on a contingency fee basis. Under this arrangement, we only receive a legal fee if an award or settlement is received and the award or settlement actually collected.
The bottom line: You are not responsible for any attorney fees unless a recovery is obtained.
Keep in mind that arbitration typically allows you to resolve a dispute more quickly and cheaply than by going to court. Instead of judges or juries, arbitrators decide if any wrongdoing has occurred and award damages. Moreover, if you have a brokerage account, it's likely that you signed an agreement requiring you to settle any disputes with your broker through arbitration rather than the courts.
MYTH: Even if I win my arbitration claim, I won't recover much of my investment losses.
FACT: The attorneys at Maddox, Hargett and Caruso have represented thousands of investors over the years, assisting and advising them throughout the securities dispute resolution process to help them recover millions of dollars.
MYTH: I don't have enough evidence or documentation to sue my stockbroker, even though he outright lied to me regarding certain investments.
FACT: If a broker/dealer, financial advisor or investment firm misrepresented certain facts about your investments or failed to disclose the risks involved, you may have a viable claim to recover your financial losses. Our team of lawyers will work with you to review your situation. Once this has occurred, we can provide a more definitive assessment of your case and, if warranted, begin the process to locate the necessary documentation and information needed to move forward.
MYTH: I have a good relationship with my stockbroker, and don't want to cause trouble. However, I also want to recover my financial losses. I can't do both.
FACT: It is a reasonable assumption that the information and recommendations a broker provides his or her clients will be accurate and true. At Wall Street brokerages, individual brokers generally do not research specific investments the firm recommends. Instead they rely on their firms to vet potential funds and investments and simply relay the opinions of their firms. In many cases, allegations are not cited against the actual broker but rather the brokerage firm.