CHICAGO, Oct. 20, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stoltmann Law Offices and the Law Offices of Joshua B. Kons LLC announce they have won a FINRA arbitration case on behalf of a pastor against Resource Horizons Group, LLC. The investor was awarded $193,650 in compensatory damages, pre-judgment interest in the amount of $53,858, attorney fees in the amount of $99,003 and expenses of $8,717. The claims at issue included selling away based causes of action related to fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, conversion and the failure to supervise.
The case involved the supervision of former Resource Horizons Group, LLC financial advisor Robert Gist. Last year, Mr. Gist settled civil fraud charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission by agreeing to pay $5.4 million. The SEC said he took money clients gave him to invest and spent it on himself. Other client funds were funneled into a company, ENCAP Technologies LLC, in which he had an ownership stake. Regulators also barred him from the industry.
The Claimant in the case never opened a brokerage account with Resource Horizons Group and did not maintain an account with the firm. According to Chicago based securities Attorney Andrew Stoltmann: "Brokerage firms are obligated to diligently supervise the activities of their financial advisors. In selling away, theft and conversion claims, there are often red flags of potential misconduct that are simply ignored or otherwise downplayed. Resource Horizons Group ignored multiple red flags of Gist's fraudulent conduct. The result was a raging scheme that took over a dozen investors, both customers of the firm and non-customers alike." According to Connecticut based co-counsel Joshua Kons: "Brokerage firms must carefully supervise the activities of its financial advisors. These obligations cannot be taken lightly. It is often in the absence of diligent supervision that these scams flourish."
According to Stoltmann: "Clients at brokerage firms like Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo, Ameriprise and UBS who are victimized in broker run Ponzi schemes, who have their money stolen or converted or receive inappropriate and unsuitable investment recommendations must resolve their disputes through the FINRA arbitration claims process. We handle these cases on a contingency fee basis. We encourage securities fraud victims to contact us to discuss their legal options with no obligation or cost."