On August 6, 2026, a customer filed a $400,000 FINRA arbitration naming Chad McQuade (CRD 5436281) and Northwestern Mutual. The claim involves outside, third-party real estate investments. It is pending, and McQuade disputes it in a written response.
According to BrokerCheck, the claimant alleges that in or around September 2022, McQuade introduced the claimant to a third-party real estate professional. The claim further alleges that he recommended outside real estate investments. It also alleges McQuade had an obligation to determine whether those investments were suitable and in the claimant's best interests.
The docket number is 26-0165810, and BrokerCheck lists the product as non-traded REIT or real estate.
In his response on BrokerCheck, Chad McQuade gives a different account. He says the claimant first mentioned wanting to invest in real estate in 2018, several years before opening any accounts with him. McQuade says he introduced the claimant to a real estate professional he knew. He adds that he did not vet the investments because he "was in no way recommending them."
Investments made away from a brokerage firm usually do not show up on its statements. The firm may never review them. That makes the line between a referral and a recommendation important.
A broker who recommends a security takes on suitability and best interest duties. A simple introduction to another professional may not count as a recommendation. Arbitrators look at the words used, any follow-up and whether the broker earned anything.
When we review a claim like this, we start with who first raised the investment and what anyone put in writing. Those general questions apply to disputes like the one naming Chad McQuade.
Brokers can add a written response to a customer dispute on BrokerCheck. It gives the broker's side in their own words, and it sits next to the allegation for anyone to read.
The response is not a ruling. Arbitrators weigh it along with documents and testimony, and the claimant still carries the burden of proof. The response from Chad McQuade appears with this claim's entry.
Brokerage firms have a duty to supervise the brokers who work for them. If Chad McQuade handled your account and you have questions, Soreide Law Group can go over it with you. Call (888) 760-6552 or contact us online. Because these claims go to FINRA arbitration rather than a local court, we handle them for investors nationwide. We work on a contingency fee basis. Here is how FINRA arbitration works.
This post summarizes public FINRA records, including BrokerCheck, as of October 28, 2026. Allegations in customer complaints and arbitrations are claims, not findings. Pending claims remain open and undecided. A settlement is also not an admission of wrongdoing. FINRA may also update or correct these records after that date.
On August 6, 2026, a customer filed a $400,000 FINRA arbitration naming Chad McQuade (CRD 5436281) and Northwestern Mutual. The claim involves outside, third-party real estate investments. It is pending, and McQuade disputes it in a written response.
Christopher Miller (CRD 4044818) has a customer dispute on BrokerCheck that settled on October 7, 2026 for $50,901. The disclosure lists Emerson Equity as the firm.
A customer dispute that settled for $80,000 on July 16, 2026 is the newest entry on the BrokerCheck report of Stephen Kerutis (CRD 2345517). The clients in that matter alleged unsuitable recommendations, and Truist Investment Services is the firm on the disclosure.
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