Soreide Law Group Files FINRA Arbitration Due to Puerto Rican Bond Losses Against Hennion & Walsh

Soreide Law Group has filed a FINRA arbitration on behalf of our clients (Claimants) against:
HENNION & WALSH, INC.
The Claimants, a married couple from New Jersey, were referred to HENNION & WALSH broker, Joseph Ismael Rodriguez (“Rodriguez”), CRD# 3093506, in 2012. The lawsuit alleges that the Claimants told Rodriguez that their investment objectives were income and preservation of capital for retirement. According to the lawsuit, in 2013, Rodriguez recommended the Claimants purchase approximately $300,000 worth of Puerto Rico bonds. The Claimants had no reason to gamble with their savings and allege they trusted Rodriguez that the bonds were safe. The Claimants are conservative investors who invest primarily in tax free municipal bonds.  In October of 2017 all Puerto Rico bonds held by the Claimants were liquidated for a realized loss of $175,000.  The lawsuit alleges that because the Claimants were completely reliant on their HENNION & WALSH broker, and allowed Rodriguez to make all investment decisions for them, he over concentrated their account into Puerto Rico bonds. The alleged misconduct on behalf of the Respondents has caused losses to the Claimants of at least $175,000 and the future lost income stream they could have generated off the $175,000 had the money been invested appropriately.
The following is a list of bonds sold to the Claimants:
-PUERTO RICO COMWLTH RFDG PUB IMPT, CPN 5.500% DUE 07/01/18, CUSIP 74514LNC7
-PUERTO RICO INFRA FING AUTH REV PORTS AUTH SER B, CPN 6.000% DUE 12/15/26 CUSIP 74528UAP6
-PUERTO RICO INFRA FING AUTH REV PORTS AUTH SER B, CPN 5.000% DUE 12/15/25 CUSIP 74528UAL5
-PUERTO RICO PUB BLDGS AUTH REV GTD RFDG GOVT, CPN 6.250% DUE 07/01/26 CUSIP 745235L58
-PUERTO RICO PUB BLDGS AUTH REV UNREF BAL GOVT, CPN 5.250% DUE 07/01/33 CUSIP 745235D65
-PR PUB BLDGS AUTH REV ACCRUED INT GTD REF-GOVT, CPN 6.000% DUE 07/01/25 CUSIP 745235K34 
The lawsuit alleges that Puerto Rico’s problems were not hidden to the public and allegedly were known to HENNION & WALSH who hold themselves out to the public as tax free municipal bond specialists.
Rodriguez is not a named party in this lawsuit.  According to FINRA’s BrokerCheck, which is available to the public, Rodriguez has four reportable customer complaints on his CRD. Some of these complaints are similar to the allegations listed in this lawsuit—unsuitable recommendations, overcharging commissions, etc. The significance of Rodriguez’s customer complaints is underscored in FINRA NOTICE to MEMBERS 03-49. In 2003, FINRA conducted a review of the CRD’s of all 663,000 registered representatives, only 2,751 (.41%) had been the subject of (3) or more customer complaints. In other words Rodriguez’s customer complaints rank him in the top one-hundredth percent of all registered representatives for customer complaints. 
According to the lawsuit, HENNION & WALSH and their representative’s actions have caused Claimants out of pocket damages of approximately $250,000.00.
The lawsuit alleges: negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, negligent supervision and breach of contract.
If you were a client of HENNION & WALSH and their registered representative, Joseph Rodriguez, and you suffered losses, contact Soreide Law Group and speak to a lawyer at no cost regarding the recovery of your investment losses through a FINRA arbitration at:  888-760-6552.
Soreide Law Group continues to represent many clients involving Puerto Rico Bonds. We represent clients nationwide before FINRA and operate on a contingency fee basis. Let our experience work for you.