ISRAELS & NEUMAN, PLC – North Dakota Securities Arbitration and Investment Fraud Attorneys

Israels & Neuman are securities arbitration and investment fraud attorneys that represent North Dakota residents who have been wronged by their stockbrokers and brokerage firms.  We have previously written on issues affecting North Dakota investors, including about Kevin Wanner and Questar Capital Corp.

North Dakota residents are protected by the provisions of the North Dakota Securities Act.  This Act provides for the regulation of the sale of securities to North Dakota residents and to North Dakota financial advisors and stockbrokers.  Additionally, the North Dakota Securities Department, with offices in Bismarck and Grafton, was created to help enforce the provisions of the North Dakota Securities Act.

Section 10-04-15 of the North Dakota Securities Act provides for liability if a financial advisor, stockbroker, or investment advisor misrepresents the risks of an investment to you.  In particular, this statute provides that:

10-04-15. Fraudulent practices.

It shall be a fraudulent practice and it shall be unlawful:

1. For any person knowingly to subscribe to, or make or cause to be made, any material false statement or representation in any application, financial statement, or other document or statement required to be filed under any provision of this chapter, or to omit to state any material statement or fact in any such document or statement which is necessary in order to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading.
2. For any person, in connection with the offer, sale, or purchase of any security, directly or indirectly, to:
   1. Employ any device, scheme, or artifice to defraud;
   2. Make any untrue statement of a material fact or to omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading; or
   3. Engage in any act, practice, or course of business which operates or would operate as a fraud or deception upon purchasers or the public.

See N.D. Cent. Code § 10-04-15.  The North Dakota Securities Law further provides civil remedies in the event that the Act is violated:

Remedies.

1. Every sale or contract for sale made in violation of any of the provisions of this chapter, or of any rule or order issued by the commissioner under any provisions of this chapter, shall be voidable at the election of the purchaser. The person making such sale or contract for sale, and every director, officer, or agent of or for such seller who shall have participated or aided in any way in making such sale shall be jointly and severally liable to such purchaser who may sue either at law or in equity to recover the full amount paid by such purchaser, together with all taxable court costs, interest as provided in this subsection, and reasonable attorney’s fees, less the amount of any income received on the securities, upon tender to the seller, in person or in open court, of the securities sold or of the contracts made, or for damages if the purchaser no longer owns the securities. Damages are the amount that would be recoverable upon a tender less the value of the securities when the purchaser disposed of them and interest as provided in subsection 2 from the date of disposition. No purchaser shall claim or have the benefit of this section if the purchaser shall have refused or failed to accept, within thirty days from the date of such offer, an offer in writing of the seller to take back the securities in question and to refund the full amount paid by such purchaser, together with interest on such amount for the period from the date of payment by such purchaser down to the date of repayment. Any offer made pursuant to this subsection must be registered or exempt from registration under this chapter in order to preclude a subsequent civil action by the purchaser.

See N.D. Cent. Code § 10-04-17.

If your financial advisor or stockbroker makes misrepresentations to you when selling securities, he or she may be liable for your losses.  In addition, the brokerage firm that your advisor works for may also be liable.

Israels & Neuman PLC is a securities arbitration and investment fraud law firm with offices in Denver, Colorado and the Seattle area.  We represent investors in FINRA arbitration and securities arbitration proceedings in all 50 states, including representing investors throughout North Dakota, and in Fargo, Bismarck, Grafton, Grand Forks, Minot, Williston, and Dickinson. Our attorneys have represented over one thousand investors against many brokerage firms in the past, including LPL Financial, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Smith Barney, Stifel Nicolaus & Company, UBS Financial Services, Oppenheimer, Charles Schwab, Wells Fargo Advisors, Ameriprise Financial Services, Raymond James, ProEquities, Securities America, National Securities Corp., and many others.

Click to view:  North Dakota Securities Act

If you are a resident of North Dakota and have lost money with your financial advisor or investment advisor, please CONTACT ISRAELS & NEUMAN at 720-599-3505 for a free evaluation of your case.