The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is currently investigating the alleged misconduct of securities broker Bryan Gabriel Mazliach. According to his publicly available FINRA BrokerCheck report, Bryan Mazliach had been the subject of multiple customer disputes over the course of his career.
Bryan Mazliach was a New York-based securities broker who worked in the securities industry for ten years. During his career, he was registered with five different securities firms. He is not currently practicing as a securities broker in any fashion.
His Registrations
- Obsidian Financial Group (2008-2010)
- Charles Vista (2010-2010)
- Rockwell Global Capital (2010-2015)
- Laidlaw & Company (2015-2017)
- Westpark Capital (2017-2018)
The Allegations
- In February 2016, a customer alleged that Bryan Mazliach had engaged in excessive trading in their account in order to receive high commissions, otherwise known as churning. This case was settled for $32,144 in damages.
- In May 2018, a customer alleged that Mazliach had engaged in churning as well as unauthorized and unsuitable trading. This case was settled for $7500 in damages.
- In January 2020, a customer alleged that Mazliach had made unauthorized and excessive trades in their account. This case was settled for $25,000 in damages.
- In September 2020, Mazliach was officially sanctioned by FINRA following allegations that he had excessively and unsuitably traded five customers’ accounts by recommending and executing in their accounts a high-cost, in-and-out trading strategy. The complaint alleges that the recommended investment strategy lost customers over $170,000, while generating commissions and fees for the firm and Mazliach of more than $187,000. As a result of these findings, Mazliach was barred from acting as a securities broker in all capacities indefinitely and made to pay $158,289
Excessive Trading
In regards to the more recent allegations made against Bryan Mazliach, the most notable was that of excessive trading. This act can often cause investors to incur a high number of unnecessary fees and prevent their investments from showing desired returns. These fees occur every time a new trade is executed and can very easily rack up in a way that significantly drains the investor’s principal. Excessive trading usually occurs due to the manner in which brokers are compensated for their services. While some brokers charge a flat fee for managing an investor’s account, many brokers are compensated by receiving a percentage of the investor’s principal investment whenever executing a trade on their behalf. This percentage acts as their commission. Some less than scrupulous brokers believe they can get away with trading an investor’s account excessively to increase their own commissions even to the detriment of their customer. This is a fraudulent trading practice known as churning.
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 Bryan Mazliach, 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.