A customer dispute has been filed against Joseph Paul Todaro; an SW Financial registered representative. The case holds Todaro responsible for investment losses due to excessive trading and failure to follow instructions and poor services provided during their relationship with him. The investor is suing for over $200K in damages.
This is not the first time that Todaro has been accused of excessive trading. The Melville, a New York-based broker, has three of his customers accusing him of similar allegations. Furthermore, when Todaro was working as a registered representative from 2018 to 2020, with Worden Capital Management—the company was indicted by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) of churning activities from its brokers last year.
The national investment fraud law firm, Haselkorn & Thibaut, P.A., are offering free case assessments to anyone who has suffered significant losses due to trading activity with Joseph Todaro. Call them at 1-800-856-3352 today.
Disclosures Involving The Former Worden Capital Management Broker
Joseph Torado has been named in the following is a list of customer disputes incurring in preceding years. These cases allege negligence and fraud, as well as other infringements such as churning, unsuitable investment products, and violations of fiduciary duties.
- May 2018: This investor claims churning, as well as unauthorized and unsuitable trades from 2015 to 2017. The investor was compensated for $14,000.
- November 2017: This is a FINRA arbitration case that was settled for $60,000. The regulator accused Torado of alleged churning, breach of fiduciary duty, and earning excess commissions and fees.
- September 2017: This investor claims Todaro was churning and netting excessive commissions. The lawsuit was settled for $14,800.
Todaro is a veteran in the securities and brokerage industry with nine years of experience. Todaro worked as a registered representative for several brokerage firms, including Spartan Capital Securities, Craig Scott Capital, Laidlaw & Co., EKN Financial Services, and Rockwell Global Capital.
What is Churning and Excessive Trading?
Churning is when a broker makes excessive trades in a customer’s account to earn more commissions and fees. Many might think this doesn’t cost you any money, but it will actually end up costing investors quite a lot. It’s illegal and a breach of a financial advisor or broker’s fiduciary duty and classified as an unsuitable trading activity.
Two Indications of Possible Churning in Your Account:
- Your broker is making many trades in your account, and you may be getting confused by the constant fluctuation. If you’re an experienced trader who can handle risk—it’s highly likely excessive trading is taking place and it might affect investor returns negatively.
- Your financial advisor or broker is making many trades in your account, and they don’t have an explanation for it.
Worden Capital Management Fined $1.5M Over Brokers’ Churning Activities
Former Worden Capital Management broker Joseph Todaro isn’t alone when it comes to people accused of churning. Last December FINRA fined Worden Capital Management $1.5 million, including $1.2 million in restitution over excessive trades executed by one of its financial advisors.
The regulatory organization brought allegations that Worden Capital Management failed to supervise its registered representatives, with some of its financial advisors carrying out hundreds of unsuitable trades in individual customers’ accounts.
Besides Todaro, three other former Worden Capital Management brokers are expected to face disciplinary action for excessive trading, namely Gregory Thomas Dean, Donald Joseph Fowler, and Salvatore Pizzimenti.
- Gregory Thomas Dean: Dean was banned from working in the industry and indicted in more than a dozen customer disputes.
- Donald Joseph Fowler: Fowler is currently being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and FINRA. He has also been listed in over a dozen lawsuits.
- Salvatore Pizzimenti: Pizzimenti was barred in June 2021 with been listed in five customer disputes.
Churning and Excessive Trading Law Firm – InvestmentFraudLawyers.com
The best way to recover from a financial advisor or brokerage firm that has acted negligently is by consulting with one of our experienced FINRA attorneys. They have handled thousands of customer disputes throughout the US and abroad, so you know your case will receive top priority! To set up an appointment nationwide, dial 1-800-856-3352 today.
