Over the last 12 years, Oakes & Fosher has tried and won more FINRA arbitration cases on behalf of individual investors than any other law firm in the country.

*Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based alone on prior results.

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The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is currently investigating the possible negligence and/or misconduct of former securities broker William Slone. According to his publicly available FINRA BrokerCheck report, William Slone has been the subject of multiple customer complaints.

William Slone worked most recently as a Connecticut based securities broker. He worked in the securities industry for forty-five years. During his career, he was registered with six different securities firms. He is no longer working as a registered securities broker in any fashion.

His Registrations

  • Bache & Co. (1969-1973, 1974-1977)
  • Blyth Eastman Dillon & Co. (1973-1974)
  • Prudential-Bache Securities (1977-1984)
  • Advest (1987-1988)
  • Buell Securities Corp. (1988-2015)

The Allegations

  • In April 1988, a customer alleged that William Slone executed unauthorized trades and forged margin forms. This case went to arbitration where the customer was awarded $24,000 in damages.
  • In March 1993, a customer alleged that William Slone recommended unsuitable investments. This case was settled for $68,000 in damages.
  • In April 1993, a customer alleged that William Slone executed unauthorized trades. This case was settled for $23,000 in damages.
  • In September 2014, a customer alleged that William Slone traded their account excessively. This case was settled for $40,000 in damages.
  • In November 2015, William Slone was officially sanctioned by FINRA. The findings in this matter state that he exercised discretion without written authorization from the customer or having his member firm accept the account as discretionary. Due to these alleged actions, he was fined $5,000 and suspended from acting as a securities broker in any fashion for a period of twenty business days.

What Does This Mean?

Securities brokers, like William Slone, are a brand of financial advisor known as a fiduciary. As fiduciaries, these brokers have a duty to their customers to always act in their best financial interests. Brokers that execute trades without their customer’s authorization act in direct conflict with their customer’s best interests. The customer has the right to have the final say on the trades made in their account, and when a security broker makes a trade without first consulting them, they have officially taken that right from the customer. The types of trades that brokers usually execute without the customer’s authorization are usually trades they have no business recommending in the first place.

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 who have lost money in this manner. If you, or someone you know, have lost money investing with William Slone, 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.