Texas Fiduciary Duty Lawyer and Texas Fiduciary Rule Lawyer Handles Texas Breach of Fiduciary Duty Lawsuits Where A Broker, Corporate Director, Lawyer, Agent, Financial Advisor, or other Fiduciary Has Violated Their Fiduciary Duty by Texas Fiduciary Duty Lawyer Jason S. Coomer

Texas Fiduciary Duty Lawyer and Texas Fiduciary Rule Lawyer handle Texas Breach of Fiduciary Duty Lawsuits where a broker, financial advisor, corporate director, partner, agent, executor, guardian, bank or other fiduciary has violated their fiduciary duty and caused a significant financial loss. If you have lost your life savings or a large amount of money through misappropriation of funds by a broker, agent, lawyer, corporate director, partner, or financial advisor, please feel free to submit an inquiry or send an e-mail message to Texas Fiduciary Duty Lawyer and Texas Fiduciary Rule Lawyer Jason Coomer.  He may be able to help you recover your losses, your family's losses, or at least help prevent a financial advisor from getting away with fraud and stealing money from other families.

Texas Fiduciary Law Can Create A Fiduciary Relationship and Fiduciary Duties on Several Types of Professionals Including Brokers, Financial Advisors, Lawyers, Bankers, Financial Managers, Partners, Directors, and Agents

To prevail on a breach of fiduciary duty claim under Texas law, a plaintiff must first prove the existence of a fiduciary relationship between the plaintiff and the defendant. See Lundy v. Masson, 260 S.W.3d 482, 501 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2008, pet. denied). [A] fiduciary duty arises out of agency law based upon a special relationship between the two parties. In re Bass, 113 S.W.3d 735, 743 (Tex. 2003) (orig. proceeding) (citing Johnson v. Brewer & Pritchard, P.C., 73 S.W.3d 193, 200 (Tex. 2002)); see also Shands v. Tex. State Bank, 121 S.W.3d 75, 77 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2003, pet. denied) (stating that an agency relationship creates a fiduciary relationship as a matter of law). An agent is a person who is authorized to act for another and is subject to the control of the other. SITQ E.U., Inc. v. Reata Rests., Inc., 111 S.W.3d 638, 652 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2003, pet. denied) (noting that agency is generally a question of fact and that the trial court, as factfinder, was free to resolve any inconsistencies in the conflicting testimony to support its implied finding of agency). “Texas law does not presume agency, and the party who alleges it has the burden of proving it.” IRA Res. Inc. v. Griego, 221 S.W.3d 592, 597 (Tex. 2007); Tex. Cityview Care Ctr., L.P. v. Fryer, 227 S.W.3d 345, 352 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2007, pet. dism’d) (same).

In Western Reserve Life Assurance Co. v. Graben, 233 S.W.3d 360, 373-74 (Tex. App.Fort Worth 2007, no pet.), the Fort Worth Court of Appeals concluded that an informal fiduciary relationship existed where an individual (Hutton) began performing as a financial advisor to two clients who were not sophisticated investors and represented to them that he would monitor and manage their investments and make appropriate financial plans. The clients had specifically told Hutton that they depended upon him for his counsel, experience, and advice. Also, Hutton testified that the relationship he had with the clients was very sacred trust and that he treated them better than I would treat myself. Also, an expert witness for certain brokers who also were sued testified that someone who represents themselves as an investor advisor [like Hutton did] has a heightened responsibility to review the account and act as a fiduciary. Importantly, on the specific facts of this case, the court of appeals rejected the broker-defendants argument that a fiduciary relationship must have existed prior to, and apart from, the agreement made the basis of the suit.

Finally, in Lee v. Hasson, 2007 WL 236899 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] January 30, 2007, pet. denied), the Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston found sufficient evidence of a confidential relationship to support the imposition of fiduciary duties. There, a financial advisor had a long-standing personal relationship with the client, they had vacationed together, and the client had relied upon him for support and advice during the client’s divorce.

Recent decisions by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) imposed over $1.4 billion in penalties on several top investment banks, brokerage firms, financial advisors, and brokers.  As such, it is apparent that you cannot always trust financial advisors to give you the complete picture regarding stocks, bonds, and other securities.  If you feel that your financial advisor has not been honest and has caused you to suffer significant investment losses, your best bet to recover your losses from investment fraud or securities fraud losses is to speak to an experienced financial advisor fraud lawyer regarding your financial fraud concerns.

In reviewing financial advisor fraud, an investor should know that investing in any investment can be a risky proposition. Markets and investments can fluctuate and the majority of investment losses result from such fluctuations rather than from financial advisor theft, fraud or misconduct. However, financial advisor fraud does happen, and you should understand common forms of financial advisor fraud and misconduct.   Some of the most common forms of financial advisor fraud and broker fraud are as follows:

  • Churning
  • Excessive Trading
  • Unsuitable Investments
  • Misrepresentation
  • Purchase of Unsuitable Securities
  • Investing in Variable Annuities/Variable Universal Life Policies
  • Risky or negligent Retirement Planning
  • Unauthorized Trading
  • Failure to Advise of Risky Investments
  • Unauthorized Risk Profile Changes

Stock brokers are paid commissions for the transactions they generate, which can encourage some stock brokers to trade excessively or churn stocks for the purpose of generating commissions instead of working for their client's investment goals.  Churning is essentially a form of excessive trading for the purpose of generating commissions for the broker's benefit.

The Fiduciary Rule Creates Fiduciary Duties For Financial Professionals Including Brokers and Financial Advisors That Invest Retirement Funds

The Department of Labor (DOL) Fiduciary Rule is a new ruling, originally scheduled to be phased in from April 10, 2017 to Jan. 1, 2018, but now delayed until June 9, 2017 including a transition period for the applicability of certain exemptions to the rule extending through Jan. 1, 2018.  The rule expands the investment advice fiduciary definition under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). If this sweeping legislation (1,023 pages in length) is not stopped outright, it will automatically elevate all financial professionals who work with retirement plans or provide retirement planning advice to the level of a fiduciary, bound legally and ethically to meet the standards of that status. While the new rules are likely to have at least some impact on all financial advisors, it is expected that those who work on commission, such as brokers and insurance agents, will be impacted the most.

Texas Fiduciary Duty Lawyer and Texas Fiduciary Rule Lawyer Handles Breach of Fiduciary Duty Cases Involving Financial Professionals

Texas Fiduciary Duty Lawyer, Jason Coomer, helps investors that have lost a significant amount of money through wrongful acts of financial professionals, majority shareholders, corporate officers, and brokers.  He  reviews investment strategies, accounting records, corporate actions, and investor trading; negotiates settlements; and if necessary files claims against negligent or fraudulent brokers.  Austin Texas Business Lawyer, Jason Coomer is an experienced business litigation attorney that handles investment fraud, shareholder actions, commercial real estate law, computer law, ponzi scheme claims, and other business litigation.  His office frequently works with other professionals including Houston Investment Fraud Lawyers, Dallas Broker Fraud Lawyers, San Antonio Investment Fraud Lawyers, and other Austin Investment Fraud Lawyers to provide high end professional legal services at reasonable prices.

Texas broker fraud lawyer, Jason S. Coomer, helps investors protect their assets and seek back their losses from fraudulent financial advisors.  If you have lost your life savings or a large amount of money through misappropriation of funds by a financial advisor, please feel free to submit an inquiry or send an e-mail message to Texas Financial Advisor Fraud Lawyer and Texas Financial Advisor Breach of Fiduciary Duty Lawyer Jason Coomer.  He may be able to help you recover your losses, your family's losses, or at least help prevent a financial advisor from getting away with fraud and stealing money from other families.

Feel Free to Contact Us with any Questions








Anti-spam Question:

Associations

Admitted to Practice in the United States District Court Western District of Texas Capital Area Trial Lawyers Association Logo Austin Bar Association Logo Capital Area Trial Lawyers Association Logo San Antonio Trial Lawyers Association Logo