Bernard McGee Allegedly Makes An Unsuitable Recommendation To Liquidate Multiple Annuities

The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is presently investigating the alleged misconduct of former securities broker Bernard McGee. According to his publicly available FINRA BrokerCheck report, Bernard McGee has been the subject of multiple customer disputes.

Bernard McGee was a New York based securities broker. He worked in the securities industry for thirty-two years. During his career, he was registered with nine different securities firms. He is no longer working as a registered securities broker.

His Registrations

• Marsan Securities Co. (1983-1984)


• Vanderbilt Securities (1984)


• Mooniest Securities (1984-1987)


• First Fidelity Capital Corp. (1987-1988)


• Integrated Resources Equity Corporation (1988-1989)


• New England Securities (1988-2007)


• Royal Alliance Associates (1989-2001)


• Cadaret, Grant & Co. (2007-2012)


• Independent Financial Group (2012-2016)

The Allegations

• In March 2004, a customer alleged that Bernard McGee made unsuitable recommendations. This case was settled for $7,500 in damages.


• In August 2012, an attorney, on behalf of a customer, alleged that Bernard McGee unsuitably recommended the customer liquidate two annuities they owned which in turn resulted in $44,000 in penalties to the customer. The customer then used the liquidated funds to purchase different annuities. Bernard McGee allegedly received almost $60,000 in commissions for the new annuity purchase. He was officially sanctioned by FINRA due to these allegations in November 2013 where he was fined $14,068, forced to pay $237,643 in restitution, and barred from acting as a securities broker in any fashion.

What Does This Mean?

Annuities are incredibly illiquid investment vehicles. This is because of the incredibly high penalties that the customer is charged when they liquidate their annuity during its surrender period. Because of these penalties, annuities should never be recommended to customers with higher liquidity needs. It is also incredibly unsuitable for securities brokers to recommend investors liquidate their annuities under any circumstances--as Bernard McGee allegedly did for his customer. Despite this, many brokers continue to engage in this unsuitable act because of the commissions they receive when executing annuity transactions.

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 in this fashion 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 Bernard McGee, please contact Oakes & Fosher for a free and private consultation.