Columbus, Ohio, Dec. 6, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration panel based in Columbus, Ohio, unanimously ordered brokerage firm Hilliard Lyons to pay damages, attorneys' fees and costs of more than $180,000 to a client represented by the law firm of Meyer Wilson Co., LPA. The FINRA arbitrators also assessed the entire cost of the hearing against Hilliard Lyons.
According to attorney David P. Meyer of Meyer Wilson Co., LPA, who served as lead counsel for the investor, "Through the issuance of this award, our client recovered damages measured by what is known as 'loss opportunity' or 'expectancy losses', rather than the securities industry concept of 'net-out-of-pocket losses'."
Meyer Wilson attorney Chad M. Kohler, who represented the investor at the hearing, explained that the panel also found Hilliard Lyons liable for $45,150 in attorneys' fees and ordered the firm to reimburse the investor her expert witness costs of $10,545 as well as the FINRA filing fees.
"This is an important win for individual investors," states Meyer, "because it sends a clear message to brokerage firms that they must recommend and implement investment strategies that are consistent with their clients' true investment objectives."
In this case, the brokerage firm argued that the arbitrators could only consider the industry concept of "net-out-of-pocket" figures in its calculation of damages to be awarded to the investor on her claims of breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, and breach of contract. Since the client's accounts suffered no "out-of-pocket" losses, the brokerage firm argued, the panel did not have any basis to award damages.
"This idea that remedies are limited to an 'out-of-pocket' level is nonsensical because it would permit brokers to engage in misconduct with impunity provided the account value did not fall below the original amount invested," Meyer explains.
"In this case, through the testimony of our expert, we proved the appropriate measure of damages was calculated by comparing the performance of the imprudent investments by the brokerage firm with the performance of a prudently invested portfolio," explained Meyer. The appropriate method to assess expectancy damages to be awarded in this case for mismanagement of investment accounts, according to Meyer, is to calculate market adjusted, or loss opportunity, damages, based on an appropriate benchmark or index.
For more information about this case or other investment loss-related issues please contact one of the attorneys at Meyer Wilson Co., LPA. The law firm is a nationally recognized securities firm representing individual and institutional investors who are victims of investment advisor negligence, fraud, Ponzi schemes, and other investment-related losses. For more information, please contact attorney David P. Meyer at 1-866-827-6537.
About Meyer Wilson Co., LPA
The mission of the Meyer Wilson law firm is: (1) to educate individual investors about how to avoid becoming a victim of investment fraud; and (2) to raise the awareness that there are legal options available to recover losses caused by investment misconduct.
The investment fraud lawyers at Meyer Wilson have successfully represented more than eight hundred individual investors from across the country in securities arbitration and litigation against all major brokerage firms and won verdicts, judgments and settlements of hundreds of millions of dollars in losses on their behalf.
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