Lars K. Soreide of Soreide Law Group Quoted in Recent Article Regarding Cases Against Broker Enver Alijaj

The following is a portion of the article quoting Securities Lawyer, Lars K. Soreide of Soreide Law Group. The article was written by Andrew Welsch and appeared in onwallstreet on March 11,2015:

"Ex-Advisor Racks Up $16M in Client Complaints

One barred advisor. Fourteen client complaints. $16 million in alleged damages.

Troubles are mounting for Enver Rahman Alijaj, a former advisor who has been hit with 14 customer complaints that allege a total of $16 million in damages, according to FINRA records. In the most recent case against him, an arbitration panel ordered him to pay two former clients $275,000.

"I've never seen a broker that has as many complaints," says Lars K. Soreide, an attorney representing the clients, who sought damages for alleged churning, excessive use of margin and overly concentrating their portfolio.
Alijaj was working at Legend Securities, a brokerage and investment banking firm based in New York, at the time of this alleged wrongdoing, which led to a complaint filed with FINRA in January 2013.

During the ensuing case, Alijaj failed to show at arbitration hearings and did not have an attorney representing him, according to FINRA records. The firm did not return calls or emails seeking comment.

Alijaj faces similar allegations of misconduct in over a dozen client complaints that span his time at multiple firms since he entered the industry in 2005, records show. Alijaj, who was barred from the industry by FINRA in October 2014, denied several of the allegations in statements in his BrokerCheck file. It is unclear if Alijaj is currently employed.

In one case that was settled for nearly $1.7 million in 2012, Alijaj said he "denies all allegations and findings by the panel," adding that he was not required to participate in the award.

Soreide, the attorney representing the two clients from the most recent arbitration decision against Alijaj, says they will attempt to seek recourse in civil court.

$1.6M SETTLEMENT

A 2009 client complaint alleging unsuitable recommendations, churning and breach of fiduciary duties was settled for $1.6 million, according to Alijaj's BrokerCheck file. The alleged misconduct occurred during 2008 and 2009. The records show that he was ordered to pay $500,000 in the settlement, and that the client had sought damages of about $2.9 million.

At the time Alijaj was employed at Point Capital -- which was later acquired by Tampa, Fla.-based broker-dealer JHS Capital Advisors -- and subsequently by John Thomas Financial, which closed in 2013 after its founder was sued by the SEC for deceiving investors. JHS did not return calls or emails seeking comment.

For the remaining client complaints involving Alijaj, which have yet to be settled or resolved in arbitration, clients are seeking more than $8 million in alleged damages. --With additional reporting by Suleman Din."

The following blog posting also appeared in our blog on February 18, 2013:

https://www.securitieslawyer.com/securitieslawyerblog/?s=Enver+Rahman+Alijaj&submit=Go

If you or a family member have suffered financial losses due to broker Enver Rahman Alijaj, call the Soreide Law Group for a free consultation on how to potentially recover those losses at 888-760-6552. We represent our clients nationwide before FINRA.