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Morgan Stanley & Co. (“Morgan Stanley”) (CRD# 8209) has many different complaints filed by FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority), state regulatory organizations, and investors such as yourself. At the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, we have investigated Morgan Stanley, its regulatory and customer complaints, and have also represented investors with claims of fraud, negligence, and breach of fiduciary duty against this organization and its financial advisors.

If you believe you have a claim against Morgan Stanley, you should strongly consider hiring an investment fraud lawyer . You should not wait until it’s too late to file a claim. The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. , offers free consultations. Give us a call at 800-732-2889 . Let’s discuss your case and see what we can do to help you get the compensation you need and deserve.

Can I Sue Morgan Stanley?

If you’ve lost money caused by Morgan Stanley and/or its employees’ misconduct then the answer is, YES, you can sue Morgan Stanley but the odds are you signed away your right to sue in court and agreed to resolve your dispute in a FINRA arbitration proceeding. Attorney Robert Wayne Pearce has over 40 years of personal experience in FINRA arbitration proceedings and knows very well how you can not only sue Morgan Stanley in FINRA arbitration proceedings, but WIN that arbitration. The easiest way to know if you have a viable case against Morgan Stanley is to call Attorney Pearce at our office at 800-732-2889 .

Investment Losses? We Can Help

Discuss your legal options with an attorney at The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A.

Get A Free Consultation

or, give us a ring at (800) 732-2889.

Robert Pearce

What is Morgan Stanley?

Morgan Stanley (CRD# 8209) is a registered broker-dealer. It operates as a full-service independent broker-dealer, providing a range of financial products and services to individual investors and financial advisors.

As a registered broker-dealer, Morgan Stanley is subject to regulations and oversight by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). It is required to comply with industry standards and regulations to ensure the protection of its clients’ interests.

A failure to comply with industry standards by either its brokers or the firm itself can result in disciplinary actions, fines, or other penalties imposed by regulatory authorities.

Morgan Stanley Has Many Different Regulatory Problems 

Morgan Stanley’ rapid growth has not been without consequences. There have been approximately 463 state and self-regulatory body disclosure events; that is, final and formal proceedings initiated by a regulatory authority (e.g., a state or federal securities agency like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or self-regulatory body like the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for a violation(s) of investment-related rules or regulations. In addition, there have been hundreds of customer complaints filed against Morgan Stanley for misconduct by its securities sales and investment advisory representatives that are not reported by the firm on its Central Depository Record. 

We have reported and written about these regulatory problems and customer complaints over many years. Morgan Stanley is a repeat offender: there are over 463 FINRA-reported disciplinary proceedings citing the firm with one form of supervisory lapses or another.

A Brief Overview of Some of the Regulatory Problems Morgan Stanley Has Faced Over the Years*

Morgan Stanley has been repeatedly censured, warned, and fined multi-millions of dollars for its own misconduct and failure to supervise its army of financial advisors.* A few of the notable FINRA Sanctions for its Supervisory Failures are below:

FINRA Sanctions Morgan Stanley $13 Million in Fines and Restitution for Failing to Supervise Sales of UITs

Brief overview: Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC was fined $3.25 million by FINRA for its failure to supervise representatives’ short-term trades of unit investment trusts (UITs). Additionally, the firm was required to pay approximately $9.78 million in restitution to over 3,000 affected customers.

FINRA Fines Morgan Stanley $10 Million for AML Program and Supervisory Failures

Brief overview: Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC faced a $10 million fine from FINRA for AML program and supervisory failures spanning over five years.

Finra fines Morgan Stanley $325,000 over research errors

Brief overview: Morgan Stanley was censured and fined $325,000 by FINRA for publishing research reports that contained inaccurate historical stock ratings. The firm revised its software to comply with new European Union regulatory requirements, but the revisions led to errors in the research disclosures.

Morgan Stanley Advisor’s ‘Guaranteed’ Investment

Brief overview: Former financial advisor Elias Hafen allegedly defrauded 11 clients by soliciting investments in a fictitious “high-yield investment fund with guaranteed returns.” Instead of investing the clients’ money, Hafen purportedly used the funds for personal expenses, including luxury items and artwork. In 2020, Hafen was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay $745,000 in restitution. Morgan Stanley settled with the victims, paying a $430,000 settlement in 2019.

Complaint: Morgan Stanley Broker Stole Millions in 12-Year Scheme

Brief overview: Former financial advisor Michael Barry Cotter allegedly stole over $6 million from customers over a period of 12 years. Cotter allegedly executed unauthorized transactions, forged customer signatures, and fabricated account statements to cover his tracks. He purportedly used the misappropriated funds for personal expenses, including mortgage payments and country club fees. In July 2020, Cotter pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years in federal prison. He was also ordered to pay a judgment of at least $4.3 million. Morgan Stanley was charged by the SEC for failing to detect or prevent Cotter’s misconduct and was ordered to pay a penalty of $3.6 million.

Morgan Stanley Rep Spent Customer Funds on Private Jet, Country Club

Brief overview: Former advisor Barry Connell allegedly defrauded his clients of at least $5 million by making unauthorized transfers from their accounts. Connell allegedly used the funds for personal expenses, including a year’s rent for a house, country club membership fees, private jet expenses, and credit card bills. He was terminated from Morgan Stanley, pleaded guilty to various charges, and was sentenced to approximately 36 months. Morgan Stanley was charged by the SEC for failing to detect or prevent Connell’s misappropriation of customer funds and was ordered to pay a penalty of $3.6 million.


*Above are only some of the regulatory disciplinary actions filed against Morgan Stanley by FINRA. NASSA and other state securities regulator investigations and enforcement actions account for another 463 BrokerCheck disclosures.

Morgan Stanley Customer Complaints

There have been scores of customer complaints filed against Morgan Stanley stockbrokers and investment advisors over the years. We have launched many investigations of current and former Morgan Stanley advisors:

  1. Barry Speyer of Morgan Stanley
  2. Inigo Domenech of Jefferies LLC
  3. Martin Gruner of Morgan Stanley
  4. Brandon Potter of J.P. Morgan Securities, LLC
  5. Frederick Schiller of Morgan Stanley
  6. Evan Schottenstein of J.P. Morgan Securities
  7. Herbert Hafen of Wells Fargo
  8. Nancy Glassman of Morgan Stanley
  9. Richard Bernstein of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC
  10. David Neumann of Cambridge Investment Research, Inc
  11. Charles Natt of Morgan Stanley
  12. Carlton Higbie of Morgan Stanley
  13. Blair Horne of Morgan Stanley
  14. Barry Pechenik of Morgan Stanley
  15. Patricia Gleason of Cetera Advisors
  16. Harold Weber of Aegis Capital
  17. Francis Aurino of Morgan Stanley
  18. Elaine Lacerte of Morgan Stanley
  19. Eric Nichols of TCFG Wealth Management, LLC
  20. Michael Dowell of Morgan Stanley
  21. Jimmy Driggers of Morgan Stanley
  22. Michael Greenstone of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
  23. David Fenning of Morgan Stanley
  24. Thomas Forbes of Morgan Stanley
  25. Mark Carroll of Morgan Stanley
  26. John Busco of Laidlaw & Company Ltd.
  27. Perry Basch of Morgan Stanley
  28. Robert Brinckerhoff of Morgan Stanley
  29. Jeremy Newton of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated
  30. Anthony Dacruz of Morgan Stanley
  31. Frank Hemmen of Morgan Stanley
  32. Rick Davidson of Aegis Capital
  33. Alberto Castaner Of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
  34. Amir Navab formerly with RBC Capital Markets, LLC
  35. Andrew Katsanis of Morgan Stanley
  36. Benjamin Duckett of Morgan Stanley
  37. Brenda Perrotti of Morgan Stanley
  38. Brian Manning of Morgan Stanley
  39. Jonathan Rothman of Morgan Stanley
  40. Edward Rulison of Morgan Stanley
  41. Jonathan Rynsky of Morgan Stanley
  42. Nicholas Sberlati of Morgan Stanley & Co.
  43. Robert Schepperle of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
  44. Preston Schoenfeld of Morgan Stanley
  45. Ilan Segev of Morgan Stanley
  46. Suzanne Sheuerman formerly with Morgan Stanley
  47. David Smith of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
  48. Walter Sweatt Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  49. Thomas Tonkovich of Morgan Stanley
  50. Nicolas Ulvert of Morgan Stanley
  51. Keith Wagner Formerly With J.P. Morgan Securities
  52. Vanessa Xavier of Equitable Advisors
  53. Richard Gregory George of Morgan Stanley
  54. Gerardo Latimer-Janer of Morgan Stanley
  55. Robert David Jr. of Morgan Stanley
  56. Michael Paesano of Morgan Stanley
  57. John Bankhead of Morgan Stanley
  58. Kirk Gill of Taylor Capital Management, Inc
  59. Jeffrey Goodstein of Morgan Stanley
  60. Timothy Fast Formerly With The Huntington Investment
  61. Alan Fishman of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  62. Eric Fuller of Morgan Stanley
  63. Jeffrey Johnson formerly with Morgan Stanley
  64. Christopher Garner of First Republic Securities
  65. Michael Galanti of Morgan Stanley
  66. Matthew Gonzales formerly with Morgan Stanley
  67. Francine Griggs of Morgan Stanley
  68. Ricardo Guimaraes of Morgan Stanley
  69. Jianmin Gu of Morgan Stanley
  70. Neil Gavande Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  71. Michael Horne of Morgan Stanley
  72. Lawrence Just of Ameriprise Financial Services
  73. Carson Kessler of Morgan Stanley
  74. Sachin Kumar of Laidlaw & Company (UK)
  75. Steven Urosevich of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  76. Christopher Vining of Morgan Stanley
  77. Victor Martinez of Morgan Stanley
  78. Mark McBee of Morgan Stanley
  79. Kelly McMurray of Morgan Stanley
  80. Michael Oliveri of Santander Securities
  81. Sumitro Pal formerly with Morgan Stanley
  82. Jose Parker of Morgan Stanley
  83. Maxwell Parziale of Morgan Stanley
  84. Megan Rehill of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
  85. Michael Rulison of Morgan Stanley
  86. Michael Scotto Of Morgan Stanley
  87. Roxann Seaton Of Morgan Stanley
  88. James Small Of Morgan Stanley
  89. Randall Thompkins Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  90. Benton Seltzer of Morgan Stanley
  91. J Powers Shepard of Morgan Stanley
  92. Rupert Sizemore Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  93. John Taddonio formerly with Morgan Stanley
  94. Eric Abbott of Morgan Stanley
  95. Marc Alport of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  96. Jefferey Biederman of Morgan Stanley
  97. Yan Binder of Morgan Stanley
  98. Alan Bogatch of Morgan Stanley
  99. Cherie Bond of Morgan Stanley
  100. Joshua Breeden of UBS Financial Services
  101. Kenneth Hutkin of Wedbush Securities
  102. Edward Johnson of Morgan Stanley
  103. Stephanie Brown of Morgan Stanley
  104. Tamara Brown of Morgan Stanley
  105. Peter Carr of Morgan Stanley
  106. Henry Chang of Morgan Stanley
  107. Steven Champagne of LPL Financial
  108. Daniel Kratish of Morgan Stanley
  109. Jonathan Lake of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  110. Howard Lee of Morgan Stanley
  111. William Collins of Morgan Stanley
  112. Benedicto Crisologo of Morgan Stanley
  113. Larry Porter of Morgan Stanley
  114. Gregg Cummings of Morgan Stanley
  115. Corey Engelhard of Morgan Stanley
  116. Ali Garba of Morgan Stanley
  117. Jeffrey Kemp of Janney Montgomery Scott
  118. Elise Davis of Morgan Stanley
  119. Mansoor Kisat of M.S. Howells
  120. Robert Hart of Morgan Stanley
  121. Celeste Dinerman of Morgan Stanley
  122. Kevin Doyle of Raymond James & Associates
  123. John Hoekman formerly with Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  124. T. Jackson of Morgan Stanley
  125. Javier Jaramillo of Morgan Stanley
  126. Thomas Kreuzer of Morgan Stanley
  127. Matthew Lane of RBC Capital Markets
  128. William Knudsen of LPL Financial
  129. Borislav Kolev of Morgan Stanley
  130. Antoinette Lucas of TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services
  131. Sue Van Der Linden of Morgan Stanley
  132. Brian Lindsay of Morgan Stanley
  133. Robert Mitchell of Stifel, Nicolaus & Company
  134. Hemant Naran Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  135. Michael New of BMO Harris Financial Advisors
  136. Manuel Ojeda of Morgan Stanley
  137. Robert Mazur of CUNA Brokerage Services
  138. Thomas McDavid of Rockefeller Financial
  139. Matthew McGuirk of Oppenheimer & Co.
  140. Nadine Miller of Morgan Stanley
  141. Gregory Pease Formerly With International Assets Advisory
  142. Richard Perkins Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  143. Michael Robertson of Morgan Stanley
  144. Nicholas Rogers of Morgan Stanley
  145. Bradley Rubin of UBS Financial Services
  146. Jordan Samelson of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  147. Robert Scarborough of Morgan Stanley
  148. Daniel Smith of Morgan Stanley
  149. Herbert Smith of Morgan Stanley
  150. James Sophia of Morgan Stanley
  151. Jerri Pratt of Morgan Stanley
  152. Donald Porterfield of Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith
  153. Theodore Pohl of Morgan Stanley
  154. Michael Piccolo of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  155. Jim Stephenson of Morgan Stanley
  156. Larry Shaw of Morgan Stanley
  157. Jacob Shapira of Morgan Stanley
  158. Samuel Sloane formerly with Morgan Stanley
  159. Howard Smith of Morgan Stanley
  160. Daniel Richardson of Morgan Stanley
  161. Drew Reinhardt of Morgan Stanley
  162. George Strnad of Morgan Stanley
  163. Andrew Sukhin of Morgan Stanley
  164. James Syvertson Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  165. Scott Swaylik of Morgan Stanley
  166. Steven Syslo of UBS Financial Services
  167. Jason Wolter of Morgan Stanley
  168. Jeffrey Wiseman Formerly With Morgan Stanley
  169. Steven Wurzer of Morgan Stanley
  170. James Zaura of J.P. Morgan Securities
  171. Scott Blando of Edward Jones
  172. Matthew Biggie of Wells Fargo Clearing Services
  173. Keith Bryan formerly with Robert W. Baird Co.
  174. Daniel Pye of Morgan Stanley
  175. Burton Halpert of Morgan Stanley
  176. Noel Williams of Morgan Stanley
  177. Carol Brookman formerly with Morgan Stanley
  178. Chris Hudson of Morgan Stanley
  179. Joshua Breeden of UBS Financial Services
  180. Candido Viyella formerly with Morgan Stanley
  181. Brady Clar of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
  182. Antoine Souma of Insigneo Securities, LLC
  183. Allan Klenke of Morgan Stanley
  184. Andrew Cutler of Morgan Stanley
  185. Carolina Medina of Morgan Stanley
  186. Charles Correal of Harvest Financial Corporation
  187. Christopher Butler of Morgan Stanley
  188. Christopher Olson of RBC Capital Markets, LLC
  189. Christopher Arnella of Morgan Stanley
  190. Christopher Novielli of Morgan Stanley
  191. Craig Cunningham of Morgan Stanley
  192. Damian Bell of International Assets Advisory, LLC
  193. Darryl Cohen formerly with Morgan Stanley
  194. David Hixon formerly with Morgan Stanley
  195. David Roth of Morgan Stanley
  196. David Kraft formerly with Morgan Stanley
  197. Diego Macedo of Morgan Stanley
  198. Eric Yamin of Morgan Stanley and formerly with UBS Financial Services, Inc.
  199. Evan Savarick of Morgan Stanley
  200. Francisco Valenzuela formerly with Morgan Stanley
  201. Gary Cecchett of Morgan Stanley
  202. Gordon Stevenson of Morgan Stanley
  203. Graham Okelly of RBC Capital Markets LLC
  204. Gregory Williams formerly with Forta Financial Group, Inc.
  205. Henrique Lucena of Laidlaw & Company (UK) Ltd.
  206. Horacio Gomez-Rabago of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
  207. Scott Whitmore of Morgan Stanley
  208. James Lacey, Jr of Morgan Stanley
  209. James Stines of Morgan Stanley
  210. Jason Zoch of Morgan Stanley
  211. Jason Parker of Morgan Stanley
  212. Javier Naselli of UBS Financial Services Inc.
  213. Jeff Kramer of Morgan Stanley
  214. Jeffrey Cadan formerly with Morgan Stanley
  215. Jeffrey Haag formerly with Morgan Stanley
  216. John Daughtridge formerly with Raymond James & Associates, Inc.
  217. John Berg of Morgan Stanley
  218. John Sorensen of Morgan Stanley
  219. John Gascoyne of Morgan Stanley
  220. John Tierney of Morgan Stanley
  221. Jon Erickson of Morgan Stanley
  222. Jonathan Dickson of Morgan Stanley
  223. Jose Martinez of Morgan Stanley
  224. Kathleen Entwistle of Morgan Stanley
  225. Kevin Butler of Morgan Stanley
  226. Kevin Pasha of J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
  227. Kyle Backus of Morgan Stanley
  228. Kwan-Rok Kong of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC
  229. Leif Olson of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC
  230. Leonard Fox, Jr. formerly with FSC Securities Corporation
  231. Lori Caumeil of Morgan Stanley
  232. Mara Schainuck of Morgan Stanley
  233. Marcio Marciano da Rocha of Morgan Stanley
  234. Maria Solanet of Insigneo Securities LLC
  235. Mark Frommer of Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
  236. Mark Sullivan of Raymond James & Associates, Inc.
  237. Mark Hebert formerly with Deutsche Bank Securities Inc.
  238. Mark Potocsny of International Assets Advisory, LLC
  239. Mark Hein formerly with Morgan Stanley
  240. Martin Shandling of Morgan Stanley
  241. Matias Cavalieri of Morgan Stanley
  242. Matthew Genco of Morgan Stanley
  243. Matthew Remis formerly with Morgan Stanley
  244. Meghan Elliott formerly with PFS Investments Inc.
  245. Michael Pellegrino, Jr. formerly with Westpark Capital, Inc.
  246. Michael Nichley of UBS Financial Services Inc
  247. Michael Carter formerly with Morgan Stanley
  248. Michael Edwards of Morgan Stanley
  249. Michael Cecil of Morgan Stanley
  250. Michael Douvadjian of Morgan Stanley
  251. Michael Hood of Morgan Stanley
  252. Michael Wagner of Morgan Stanley
  253. Michael Goodworth of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated
  254. Nordo Nissi formerly with M.S. Howells & Co.
  255. Patricia Fontan-Sorlie of Morgan Stanley
  256. Paul Snider of Morgan Stanley
  257. Peter Heidt of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC
  258. Petros Ingilizian formerly with Morgan Stanley
  259. Ralph Jackson, III of Morgan Stanley
  260. Robert Deblasio of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC
  261. Robert Spina of UBS Financial Services Inc.
  262. Robin Runco formerly with CFD Investments, Inc.
  263. Ronald Littlehale, Jr. formerly with Morgan Stanley
  264. Roxann Romano of Morgan Stanley
  265. Ruben Morfin of Morgan Stanley
  266. Ryan Taleghani of Morgan Stanley
  267. Ryan Wroblewski of Morgan Stanley
  268. Ryan Mummert of Morgan Stanley
  269. Sandra Weiss of J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
  270. Sandy Jukel of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC
  271. Sarah Montoya of Morgan Stanley
  272. Schuyler Grey, III of Morgan Stanley
  273. Seth Mason formerly with Morgan Stanley
  274. Shu Mei Yu of Morgan Stanley
  275. Sibyl Woo of Morgan Stanley
  276. Stephen Lawless of Morgan Stanley
  277. Stephen Mills of Morgan Stanley
  278. Steven Lovell of Morgan Stanley
  279. Steven Thorpe of Morgan Stanley
  280. Thomas Parr of Morgan Stanley
  281. Thomas O’Rourke, Jr. of Morgan Stanley
  282. Thomas Morgan, Jr. formerly with Morgan Stanley
  283. William Ard formerly with Morgan Stanley
  284. Woodford Mooers, Jr. of Rosenblatt Securities Inc.
  285. Zachary Roberts of J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
  286. Zhong Zhao of Morgan Stanley
  287. Deborah Albright of Morgan Stanley
  288. Gregory Cousins of Morgan Stanley
  289. Ryan Culpepper of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC
  290. Elinar Deghbashyan of NYLife Securities LLC
  291. David Donovan of Morgan Stanley
  292. Bruce Galloway of Morgan Stanley
  293. Rosita Kaufman of Morgan Stanley
  294. Adam Lang of Morgan Stanley
  295. Alfred Bozzo III of Morgan Stanley
  296. Arthur Caruso of Morgan Stanley
  297. Bobby Aycock of Morgan Stanley
  298. Brian Currie of Morgan Stanley
  299. Diane Finnerty of Morgan Stanley
  300. Gianluca de Berardinis of Morgan Stanley
  301. Kerry Hoffman of B. Riley Wealth Management
  302. Donna MacKay of Morgan Stanley
  303. RJ Malcampo of Morgan Stanley
  304. Paul Mandel of Morgan Stanley
  305. Ethan Reid of Morgan Stanley
  306. Robert Rumley, III of William Blair
  307. George Salidas of Morgan Stanley
  308. Sally Ann Weger of Morgan Stanley
  309. Jeffrey Smulevitz of Morgan Stanley
  310. Nicholas Stenger of Morgan Stanley
  311. Timothy Brennan of Morgan Stanley
  312. Talal Bazzi of Morgan Stanley
  313. Melinda Beier of Morgan Stanley
  314. Sean Brennan of Morgan Stanley
  315. Darryl Cohen formerly with Morgan Stanley
  316. Teri Kelley of Morgan Stanley
  317. Raymond Harrison of Morgan Stanley
  318. Maury Lomax of Morgan Stanley
  319.  James Monken of Morgan Stanley
  320. Chris Moyseos of Morgan Stanley
  321. Ariel Santana of Morgan Stanley
  322. Damon Stewart of Morgan Stanley
  323. John Strickler of Cetera Investment Services LLC
  324. Michael Weiss, Sr. of Morgan Stanley
  325. Lisa Capobianco of Morgan Stanley
  326. Michael Coughlin formerly with Morgan Stanley
  327. John Cutrupi of Raymond James Financial Services, Inc.
  328. Darcy Dahl Morgan Stanley
  329.  Marcus Kline of Morgan Stanley

If you have lost money investing with any of these Morgan Stanley advisors or others within this brokerage firm, it’s important that you reach out to an investment loss attorney quickly because the statutes of limitations can bar your claims. Call us at 800-732-2889.

Why Does Morgan Stanley Have So Many Regulatory Problems And Customer Complaints?

Independent broker-dealers are notorious for their lax supervisory practices and procedures. The business model of these franchise type operations is to open many offices nationwide for steady growth of fixed monthly revenues without the costs attendant to a full-service branch office with on-site manager, compliance officer and operation personnel. The registered representatives of these independent broker-dealers generally operate as separately incorporated businesses. They are not employees of the broker-dealer and therefore not controlled in the same manner as full-service brokerage firm representatives. The registered representatives control their structure and costs to maximize profits and often leave the protection of investors’ rights and interests as their lowest priority.

The typical supervisory organization of independent broker-dealer operations is to have other independent contractors operate Offices of Supervisory Jurisdiction (OSJs) to monitor the registered representatives from geographically remote offices and then report to the main franchisor’s compliance office at national headquarters. The supervisors at the OSJs are not employees of the franchisor and often run their own brokerage, insurance and other businesses. They are not devoted full-time supervisors of the smaller branch offices. Consequently, OSJ managers cannot and do not supervise the day-to-day operations of the registered representatives of these Independent broker-dealers. 

Generally, there is no immediate review of new accounts opened, securities transactions, business records, cash or securities receipts and deliveries, correspondence and business activities unrelated to the securities brokerage operation at these independent brokerage firms. The lax supervision leaves investors who have transferred their accounts to the smaller independent broker-dealer vulnerable to sales of securities that have not been reviewed or authorized by anyone other than the sales representative earning a commission. There may be no one onsite to detect forgeries of clients’ signatures on documents, the placement of inaccurate information about a client’s investment objectives and financial condition to document the suitability of a particular investment recommendation. Oftentimes there is no daily review of sales literature and client correspondence to protect against misrepresentations and misleading statements being made to investors. In fact, it is not unusual for there to be only one compliance audit visit per year at many of these offices.

These Independent brokerage business operations are worrisome to the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), which has documented more instances of sales abuse and consequently investor losses at these firms than the traditional brokerage firms with branch offices with on-site managers and compliance personnel.

Did Morgan Stanley Advisor Misconduct Cause You Investment Losses?

When financial advisor misconduct has caused you to lose substantial value to your investment accounts, you have the right to seek reimbursement from the responsible parties. Morgan Stanley is responsible like any employer for its financial advisors acts and omissions. In addition, it has an independent duty to supervise its stockbrokers and investment advisors. These cases can be extremely complex, and so having the support of a reputable attorney who is experienced in recovering investment losses for investors is key to your success. Many customers make the mistake of contacting Morgan Stanley without representation with an attorney about their complaints and have their complaints denied.

Related Read: Can You Sue Your Brokerage Firm?

Investment Losses? We Can Help

Discuss your legal options with an attorney at The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A.

Get A Free Consultation

or, give us a ring at (800) 732-2889.

Robert Pearce

Consult With An Attorney Who Recovers Investment Losses Caused By Morgan Stanley Today!

The investment loss attorneys at The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., have helped countless investors over the last 40 years recover the losses from their investment accounts that were caused by broker negligence or misconduct. The firm has extensive experience with Morgan Stanley cases, and Attorney Pearce is committed to seeing that those responsible for the losses you have suffered are held fully accountable.

Give us a call at 800-732-2889 . Let’s discuss your case and see what we can do to help you get the compensation you need and deserve.

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Robert Wayne Pearce

Robert Wayne Pearce of The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. has been a trial attorney for more than 40 years and has helped recover over $170 million dollars for his clients. During that time, he developed a well-respected and highly accomplished legal career representing investors and brokers in disputes with one another and the government and industry regulators. To speak with Attorney Pearce, call (800) 732-2889 or Contact Us online for a FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION with Attorney Pearce about your case.

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