The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is currently interested in hearing from investors that believe they may have lost money investing with Atlas Growth Partners. There were many warning signs and red flags with these investments, and brokers that recommended these investments despite these concerns may be legally responsible for damages suffered by their clients.
Atlas Growth Partners
Atlas Growth Partners, L.P. is an independent developer and producer of natural gas, crude oil and NGLs with operations primarily focused in the Eagle Ford Shale in south Texas. Atlas Energy Group, LLC (“ATLS”), a Delaware limited liability company, manages and controls the limited partnership.
In their filing with the SEC, Atlas Growth Partners disclosed: “significant risks and uncertainties related to our inability to satisfy our current liabilities raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. If these liabilities are called, we will not have sufficient liquidity to repay all of our outstanding liabilities, and as a result, there would be substantial doubt regarding our ability to continue as a going concern.”
Atlas Growth Partners raised over $230 million from investors across the country. But as of March 2021, the company reported net assets of less than $4 million. This discrepancy could represent a loss of more than $200 million of investors’ principal. The inherent issue with alternative investment products, like those in Atlas Growth Partners, is that they generally involved a high degree of risk. In fact, Atlas was self-described as a high risk investment. Stock brokers are required to only recommend suitable investments to their clients, and they are required to conduct reasonable due diligence on the investments they recommend to insure that they comport with their clients’ investment tendencies. Atlas Growth Partners paid high upfront fees and commissions to the brokers that sold the investment to their clients. Approximately 10% of the investor’s capital went to these fees for the broker. Brokers that recommended Atlas to retirees, or conservative/moderative investors may be legally responsible for damages incurred, and investors may have a legal right to recover these damages.
Aside from this, Atlas Growth Partners had already showed a significant amount of warning signs. An inherent problem with alternative investments is that they almost always involve a high-degree of risk. They are typically sold as unregistered securities, lacking the same regulatory oversight as more traditional investments, such as stocks or bonds. Additionally, Atlas’ shares were highly illiquid, and share owners of Atlas had limited voting right, lacking any electoral control over Atlas’ general partner or board of directors. On this point, Atlas further disclosed that there were potential conflicts between the general partner and other affiliates of the general partner. They have further neglected to file several financial reports since 2019, and as of December 21, 2021 the company had filed a notice to terminate its securities registration.
Oakes & Fosher Can Help
Many investors are unaware of the legal recourse available to them after losing money due to securities broker fraud and/or negligence. The truth is that investors who have lost money due to this fraud or negligence may actually be entitled to damages.
Oakes & Fosher dedicates its entire legal practice to helping investors across the nation. If you, or someone you know, have lost money investing with Atlas Growth Partners, please contact Oakes & Fosher for a free and private consultation. Oakes & Fosher handles cases on a contingency basis, which means there are no fees charged unless we collect for you.
