Securities Lawyers Blog
The law offices of Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating claims against broker Jeffrey Poosch (Poosch), currently associated with Summit Brokerage Services, Inc. (Summit Brokerage) out of Fort Gratiot, Michigan. According to a BrokerCheck report, Poosch has been subject to at least four customer disputes during the course of his career. According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Poosch’s customer complaints concern allegations of unauthorized trading and misrepresentations among other claims.
In February 2018 a customer filed a complaint alleging that Poosch made unauthorized trading and failed to disclose fees associated with a variable annuity. The customer requested over $500,000 in damages. The claim was denied.
In December 2016 a customer alleged that Poosch failed to disclose penalties to them. The amount of damages was not specified. The claim settled for $6,269.
Advisors are not allowed to engage in unauthorized trading. Such trading occurs when a broker sells securities without the prior authority from the investor. All brokers are under an obligation to first discuss trades with the investor before executing them under NYSE Rule 408(a) and FINRA Rules 2510(b). These rules explicitly prohibit brokers from making discretionary trades in a customers’ non-discretionary accounts. The SEC has also found that unauthorized trading to be fraudulent nature because no disclosure could be more important to an investor than to be made aware that a trade will take place.