The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is presently investigating the possible misconduct of former securities broker James E. Lyons. According to his publicly available FINRA BrokerCheck report, James E. Lyons has been the subject of multiple customer disputes.
James E. Lyons was a Louisiana based securities broker. He worked in the securities industry for thirty-four years. During his career, he was registered with three different securities firms.
His Registrations
- Capitol Securities (1983-1993)
- Morgan Keegan & Company (1993-2013)
- Raymond James & Associates (2013-2017)
The Allegations
- In October 2011, a customer alleged that James E. Lyons recommended unsuitable securities, misrepresented material details, and executed unauthorized trades in connections with mutual funds, stocks and UITs. This case was settled for $152,000 in damages.
- In April 2016, a customer alleged that James E. Lyons breached his fiduciary duty, churned their account, made fraudulent omissions, violated federal securities laws, violated state securities laws, executed unauthorized trades, and recommended unsuitable securities. This case was settled for $400,000 in damages.
- James E. Lyons was discharged from his position at Raymond James & Associates in April 2017 after another customer alleged he engaged in unauthorized trading.
- In September 2017, another customer alleged that James E. Lyons engaged in unauthorized trading.
- In November 2017, multi-claimants alleged that James E. Lyons violated FINRA and Industry Standard Rules, breached contract, breached federal and state laws, made fraudulent and/or negligent misrepresentations, engaged in fraudulent concealment, over-concentrated their account, recommended unsuitable securities, and executed unauthorized trades. This case was settled for $269,000 in damages.
- James E. Lyons was barred by FINRA in June 2018 from acting as a securities broker in any fashion after allegedly failing to comply with a FINRA investigation into his alleged misconduct.
- In September 2018, a customer alleged that James E. Lyons over-concentrated their account and made unsuitable investment recommendations. This case was settled for $677,000 in damages.
- In June 2019, a customer alleged that James E. Lyons violated FINRA rules, executed unauthorized trades, recommended unsuitable securities, over-concentrated their account, mis-marked trades, engaged in gross self-dealing, failed to disclose risk, breached contract, made fraudulent representations, concealed costs, and recommended securities with a major conflict of interest. This case is currently pending. The customer is seeking an undisclosed amount in damages.
Unauthorized Trading
One of the most noteworthy allegations levied against James E. Lyons was that of unauthorized trading. This is a very serious allegation as it can lead to significant financial harm to investors. Securities brokers must obtain their customer’s authorization before they execute trades on their behalf. This is because investors are entitled to have final say on whether or not they are invested in a particular security.
There is a trading practice that some brokers engage in known as discretion. Discretion is a process where the securities broker does not have to obtain authorization for every trade they make on the investor’s behalf. However, securities brokers must receive express written authorization from their customer before they begin exercising in discretion. The broker’s member firm must also approve the account in question as suited for discretionary trading.
Unauthorized trading is seen by many as fraud. This is because it involves the securities broker engaging in a deceptive act. Despite this, many securities brokers continue to engage in unauthorized trading. This is done for a number of reasons, however, it is almost always to serve their own financial interests, as opposed to the investor’s.
Misrepresentation
Another noteworthy allegation levied against James E. Lyons was that of misrepresentation. This occurs whenever a securities broker provides their customer with falsified information. This can either be done on purpose, or through the securities broker’s own negligence. Regardless of intent, misrepresentation can cause serious financial harm to investors. This is because it can cause investors to purchase unsuitable products that they would not have otherwise purchased had the information they had on it been accurate.
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 James E. Lyons, please contact Oakes & Fosher for a free and private consultation. We work on a contingency basis, which means there are no fees charged unless we collect for you.
