WHITE COLLAR CRIME: INVESTMENTS AND WORKPLACE CRIME

 

 

White Collar Crime-Investment Fraud Guide Introduction

 

There are American Greed type shows on TV, on youtube and other places.  They’re all the same.  All investments beyond keeping your money in a savings bank account or with a government savings bond are a risk.

 

The first thing you do if you want to play with stocks and mutual funds is only go with the big companies you see consistently advertising on Money Magazine like ameritrade.com for stocks.  The big mutual fund companies are fidelity, vanguard, Charles Schwab and a few others.

 

Other than that, if it’s too good to be true, it is.  Don’t fall for TV ads.

 

Well-established companies can be bought by evil people and plundered.

 

This book goes through the worlds of paper cons and scams.

 

As much as I hate to say it, people get ripped off out of stupidity and greed. 

 

Most people don’t even know that there are hundreds of money books at #332 of any library plus many money magazines.  That’s stupidity.

 

Then there’s gullibility.  Don’t listen to anyone.  Money is not rocket science.  I wrote a money superbook.  You can figure it out in about a month.  There’s not much going on.  It’s all talk.

 

 

Chapter 1. Investment Fraud Guide

 

Investment Scams/ Investment Fraud 1

 

If an investment company is not transparent, if they don’t open their books to show who they deal with it’s a scam.

 

If they make big gains while everybody else is losing, it’s a scam.

 

If they operate offshore, it’s probably a scam.

 

If you can’t understand it in simple terms, it’s a scam.

 

If the top guy is flamboyant and likes to spend money, it’s a scam.

 

If they are conspicuous consumers, it’s a scam.

 

The oldest scam in the book is the pump and dump; buy, lie, sell high.  The latest scam is the internet where some Joe posts a bunch of messages on message boards telling about how great a stock is then selling his once the stock goes up. 

 

I have seen a mega-phony goldmine scam and I have seen phony biotech and tech stock scams.  People create dummy companies with impressive sounding names, go public, write up phony reports with short term gains and scam people. 

 

The Sec can't check everyone out.  By the time they get to a scam company, they're gone.  The moral to the story is don't invest in new, upstart companies that try to persuade you with the get on the ground floor pitch, we're gonna be the next microsoft. 

 

Despite the so-called bull market on Wall Street, appearances can be deceiving and there are vultures there ready to pounce on the naive, middle class investor.  Con artists and organized crime have moved in. 

 

The most typical con is to start a dummy company, hype it up, print up nice pamphlets and encouraging news, pay off stockbrokers to sell the stock then it's a bust and you're left holding the bag with nothing. 

 

Do your research.  If you want to invest, why not stick with the established companies with some track record for several years.  Stable growth is better than risky hype anyday.

 

The Sec Act of 1934 says you have to have a device, scheme or artifice to defraud which means you have to say something fraudulent then act on it.  If you go on the internet and give bad advice, you can’t be charged for it but if you say something fraudulent or do some scheme and trade on it, you’re cooked like 15 year old Jonathan G. Lebed of Cedar Grove, NJ who got caught and made the news, some kid getting arrested. 

 

In a nutshell, be wary of promises of quick profit or insider knowledge with pressure to invest quickly and be wary of promoters who try to hide their identities. 

 

I already mentioned gold mine scams and new high tech company scams and beyond that, the internet seems to be the new playground for scam artists.  Just because someone has a website or ad online doesn't make them legitimate. 

 

The online service providers sell space and they usually don't check or care what the buyer puts there.  Check to see if the company is registered with the Sec and has filed a Form BD. 

 

If it hasn't, call the Sec Office of Investor Education and Assistance, 202-942-7040 or the National Assn. of Securities Dealers hotline at 800-289-9999. 

 

For problem with futures, call 800-676-4nfa, nfa.futures.org.  Refer to sec.gov and cftc.gov for more info.  The national futures assn., 800-676-4nfa, nfa.futures.org, offers two free pamphlets Swindlers Are Calling and Investment Swindles.

 

I even heard of one scam where some guy printed up some bogus bond certificates on his computer, made up some ridiculous interest rate, created a phony company name, put up a website and collected over 3.5 million dollars before he got caught and the thing is it's only a white collar crime.  These guys rarely do much time even if they swindle multi-millions of dollars.

 

Successful investment swindlers use every trick in the book and some that aren't even recorded to convince you that none of the descriptions and precautions in the following pages apply to them.  After all, they are offering you a once‑in‑a‑lifetime opportunity to make a lot of money quickly and you do trust them, don't you? 

 

Investment swindlers are a faceless voice on a telephone or a friend of a friend.  They may perform surgery on their victims' savings from a dinghy back office or boilerroom or from an opulent #in the new bank building. 

 

They may wear three piece suits or they may wear hard hats.  They may have no apparent connection to the investment business or they may have an alphabet‑soup of impressive letters following their names.  They may be glib and fast‑talking or so seemingly shy and soft‑spoken that you feel almost compelled to force your money on them.

 

The first rule of protecting yourself from an investment swindle is to rid yourself of any notions you might have as to what an investment swindler looks like or sounds like. 

 

Indeed, some swindlers don't start out to be swindlers.  There are case histories in which individuals who held positions of trust and esteem have sacrificed their ethics for the fast buck of running an investment scam. 

 

In still other cases, investment programs that began with legitimate intentions went sour through happenstance or poor management leading the promoter to mishandle or abscond with investors' capital. 

 

Protecting your savings against fraud involves at least three steps:

 

Carefully check out the person and firm you will be dealing with;

 

Take a close and cautious look at the investment offer itself.

 

Continue to monitor any investment that you decide to make. 

 

No one of these precautions alone may be sufficient. Although victims of investment fraud can differ from one another in many ways, they do, unfortunately, have one trait in common - Greed that exceeds their caution plus a willingness to believe what they want to believe.

 

Swindlers simply attempt to mimic the sales approaches of legitimate investment firms and salespersons namely telephone, direct mail and advertising. 

 

Even if a swindler has to make 100 or 200 phone calls to find a mooch, he figures that the opportunity to pocket thousands of dollars of someone's savings is still good pay for the time and cost involved. 

 

Some sellers of fraudulent investment deals buy bona fide mailing lists, names and addresses of persons who, for example, subscribe to a particular investment related publication, who have responded to previous direct mail offers or who have other characteristics that swindlers look for like being in the upper socio-economic class.

 

A newspaper or magazine ad may offer profitable opportunities far more attractive than available through conventional investments.  Once you have taken the bait, the swindler will then attempt to set the hook. 

 

Be cautious of strangers offering you something that sounds too good to

be true. 

 

Never go for an unsolicited investment offer.

 

Don't invest in anything based on appearances.  Just because an individual or company has a flashy website, it doesn't mean anything.  Websites can be created in a matter of minutes.  After taking money for a few months, they disappear.

 

Forget about dealing with individuals or companies from outside your own country.  Buy ADRs (foreign stocks) on your regular stock exchange.

 

Buy stocks, bonds and funds from the big companies only.  Everything else could be fraud.

 

Investment Scams/ Investment Fraud 2

 

The only rule is do not invest money in anything unless you’re buying real estate like a house or you’re buying stocks, bonds or funds from one of the big, long-established companies like Fidelity or Vanguard.  Buy stocks through TD-Ameritrade.

 

Everybody else could be a scam, especially some individual acting like a bigshot.  Just watch CNBC’s American Greed.  All those con artists are one-man operations who hire some stupid people to make it look good but it’s almost always one guy masterminding the scam.  That can’t happen in big company like Charles Schwab. 

 

Bernie Madoff controlled everything in his small outfit.

 

The classic Ponzi scheme like Bernie Madoff and many others pulled off is that they claim to be money managers, investing people’s money for a fee.  They get a few investors, make up phony returns that make it look like they’re up 20 or more percent which is a great return but it’s all fake.  If an investor wants his money at this early stage, they give it to them from the money they get from new investors but no stocks and funds were ever traded.  The portfolio is fake too.

 

People talk about the great returns so other people want to get in.  Money flows in and for awhile investors are rewarded with a good return until the interest checks stop coming. 

 

Phone calls go unanswered or the fraudster lies, saying the check is in the mail.

 

Some guys skip town with all the investors' money then start again somewhere else. 

 

The guy had simply been taking a portion of the investment of others and paying it back to the members until he had amassed enough to leave town.

 

This simple fraud is done everywhere even in churches.  Church members are targets because there is a natural trust among the church community which wolves in sheep’s clothing exploit.

 

The promise of large returns and the

fact that others had already been well paid in the first year brought the suckers running, wanting to get on the

bandwagon and make money.

 

It’s easy to forge investment statements or test results on a gold mine.

 

Fraudulent offers may come

by telephone, e-mail, mail or TV and radio ads.  There was a TV ad soliciting a minimum investment of $5000.  Who is stupid enough to hand some stranger $5000 who you’ve never heard of before because of a slick TV commercial?

 

The fraudsters are very creative.  They send attractive and official

looking literature but so what.  It’s just the art of fraud.

 

Anybody who invests money in anything they got from a spam email is really stupid.

 

For telemarketing, hang up right away.

 

Some of the many schemes are:

 

spam

phony websites

Ponzi schemes

pyramid schemes

false advertising

boiler room telemarketing

 

Anybody can create some microcap company which is traded on the over-the-counter OTC markets (OTC Bulletin Board OTCBB), hype it up, sell stock then bale.

 

Don't reply to spam.  If you reply to the sender to remove you from their mailing list, they just keep sending you more spam.

 

Be on the lookout for phony websites

claiming to be security regulators, your bank, credit card company, etc.  Your bank will never send an unsolicited email asking for your personal information. If your bank sends you an email, don’t click the link they give you.  Type the bank website into your browser.

 

Even though investment crooks know that regulatory agencies regularly monitor ads in major publications, some nevertheless use such publications in the hope of being able to hit and run before an investigator shows up.  Others advertise in narrowly circulated publications they think regulators may be less likely to see.

 

Some swindlers go first class.  Using profits from previous swindles, they rent plush offices, hire an interior decorator and pretty receptionist and open what has the appearance but not the reality of a reputable investment firm.  You may even have to phone for an appointment and once there don't be surprised to be kept waiting (that's intended to make you all the more eager). 

 

This kind of swindler's success depends on how long he can keep his victims from knowing they are being cheated.  Investors are assured that their large profits are being reinvested to earn even larger profits.  Such a swindler may join local civic groups, contribute to charities and generally play the role of solid citizen.

 

The crux of the investment scam artist is his ability to be a good salesman and tap into your greed factor.  They can promise you the world with the expectation of large profits, low risk investment, a sure thing, a hot new technology stock, the urgency of the moment to get in on the ground floor and finally, the ability to be your friend  and get your confidence. 

 

Ponzi Scheme.  One of the oldest schemes going involves paying fast, large profits to initial investors (actually from their own or other peoples' investments) knowing that they are likely to recommend the investment to their friends and these friends will tell their friends. 

 

Soon, the swindler no longer needs to find new victims; they will find him.  It's become one of the oldest and most often employed investment schemes because it's proven to be one of the most lucrative. 

 

The Infallible Forecaster.  The routine goes like this.  Jim phones someone we will call Mrs. Smith and quickly assure her that, "No," he doesn't want her to invest a single cent.  "Never invest with someone you don't know."  But he says he would like to demonstrate his firm's research skill by sharing with her the forecast that so‑and‑so commodity was about to experience a significant price increase.

 

Sure enough, the price soon went up.  A second phone call doesn't solicit an investment either.  Jim simply wants to share with Mrs. Smith a prediction that the price of so‑and‑so a commodity was about to go down.  As predicted, the price of the commodity subsequently declines.  By the time Mrs. Smith receives a third call, she is a believer. 

 

She not only wants to invest but insists on it with a big enough investment to make up for the opportunities she had already missed out on. 

 

What Mrs. Smith has no way of knowing was that Jim had begun with a calling list of 200 persons.  In the first call, he told 100 that the price of so‑and‑so commodity would go up and the other 100 were told it would go down. 

 

When it went up, he made a second call to the 100 who had been given the correct forecast.  Of these, 50 were told the next price move would be up and 50 were told it would be down.  The end result: Once the predicted price decline occurred, Jim had a list of 50 persons eager to invest.

 

Phony gold.  Not only did the two brothers have a fancy office building with their own company name on it but the investment offer seemed sound and straightforward: "Instead of buying gold outright and holding it for appreciation, make a small down payment that the firm could use to secure financing that would permit much larger quantities of gold to be bought and held for the investor's account.  That way, when the price of gold rose as was sure to happen, investors stood to realize highly leveraged profits. 

 

The company provided storage vaults where investors could view the wall to wall stacks of glittering bullion.  By the time authorities caught wind of the scheme's suspicious smell and looked for themselves, it turned out the only thing gold was the color of the paint on the cardboard used to construct look‑alike bars of bullion.  The counterfeit gold, however, proved far easier to find than the millions of dollars of investors' money.

 

Con artists have a sucker mailing list that they sell to each other.  Most con artists try to control the conversation by talking most of the time.  The way to disarm them is to ask questions like these:

 

Where did you get my name?

 

What risks are involved in the proposed investment?

 

Can you send me a written explanation of your investment so I can consider it at my leisure?

 

Would you mind explaining your investment proposal to some third party, such as my attorney, accountant, investment advisor or banker? 

 

Can you give me the names of your firm's principals and officers?

 

Can you provide references?

 

Do you have any documents such as a prospectus or risk disclosure statement that you can provide? 

 

Are the investments you are offering traded on a regulated exchange such as a securities or futures exchange? 

 

What governmental or industry regulatory supervision is your firm subject to? 

 

How long has your company been in business? 

 

What has your track record been?

 

When and where can I meet with you or with another representative of your firm?

 

Where, exactly, will my money be?  And what type of regular accounting statements do you provide?

 

How much of my money would go for commissions, management fees and the like?

 

How can I liquidate (i.e.  sell the item I'd be investing in) if and when I decide I want my money? 

 

If disputes should arise, how can they be resolved?

 

The bottom line is before you invest, investigate with federal agencies, regulatory agencies, the BBB, consumer protection againcies, trade organizations and other professionals in the field to get their opinion if they have even heard about the company.

 

Bear in mind that con artists are slick.  Never just go by their word alone that it's a sure thing waiting for you.  Don't invest just because friends are blindly investing. 

 

Make a phone call to the financial editor of your local newspaper.  Although newspapers don't give endorsements or make investment recommendations, they may be aware of a swindler who is working a scam in the area.

 

If you become suspicious or overly uncomfortable with an investment you have made and if you are unable to totally resolve your concerns, the best thing you can do is try to get out of it as quickly as possible. 

 

That means demanding your money back, accompanied, if necessary, by threats to contact authorities.  You might or might not get it.  The best you can hope for, if indeed there's fraud involved, is that the swindler may decide to refund your money rather than risk having you blow the whistle while he is still on the prowl for new investors. 

 

If that happens, consider yourself more fortunate than most.  No doubt you will be told that backing out now would be anything from contractually illegal to a terrible financial mistake. 

 

Swindlers figure that every once in a while some of their more fidgety investors simply have to be reconvinced.  He may tell you that you are so close to making really big money or the investment now looks even more profitable than originally expected. 

 

If you insist on a refund of your investment, insist on it immediately.  Ask to pick it up yourself or offer to pay the cost of having it sent by overnight mail or wired directly to your bank. 

 

Don't settle for "it will take a week or two” or “the check is in the mail.”As everyone knows, checks seem to be lost more often than any other type of mail.  If you don't get your investment back (and chances are you won't) or even if you do and still suspect a swindle, report it promptly to the appropriate authorities and regulatory officials. 

 

They may be able to conduct an investigation and, if called for, seek legal action to impound whatever funds the firm still has.

 

The majority of individuals and companies offering investments to the public are subject to some sort of regulation and may be subject to multiple regulation. 

 

Those which trade in futures contracts and options on futures contracts are regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a federal agency and by National Futures Association, 800-676-4nfa, nfa.futures.org, an industrywide self‑regulatory organization authorized by Congress. 

 

In the securities and securities options business, the federal regulatory agency is the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

 

There is also an industry self‑regulatory organization, the National Association of Securities Dealers. 

 

The Federal Trade Commission has jurisdiction over advertising, franchises and business opportunities. 

 

Deals involving interstate promotion of land sales are regulated by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. 

 

By contacting the appropriate regulatory organization, you can generally find out whether the firm or person is properly registered to engage in that type of business and whether any public disciplinary actions have been taken against them. 

 

If the mails are used in promoting or operating a phony investment scheme, federal Postal Inspectors want to know about it.  The postmastern your community can put you in touch with them. 

 

Fraud involving any form of interstate commerce is also of interest to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The nearest office should be listed in your phone directory. 

 

See the movies Wall Street from around 1985 and Boiler Room from 1998 which are about some of the shady dealings involved in the stock trade.

 

All Investing is a Risk, Most Marketing is Hype, It’s a Lie

 

If you see hype, go the other way.  Stick with basic stocks for the long run.

 

Insiders create the bubbles, reap the rewards then leave the outsiders (the public investors) holding the bag.  Is this criminal or is it common sense?  You are to blame too for being so greedy, getting caught up in the hype and not doing your homework, taking a rational look at what was goin' on.  You bought into the hype like a fool and now you are the fool.

 

Be conservative rather than follow the glitz or if you decide to follow the glitz, watch it and when you feel the tide starting to turn, sell it all in one shot, buy your boring stocks and watch the coming debacle.

 

The problem with the investment business for the the consumer is basically Caveat Emptor, let the buyer beware.  When you check out an investment vehicle, whatever it mught be, bonds, funds, stocks, etc., the person selling the stuff to you wants to sell to make his commission so who is the onus on? 

 

Is it on him to be honest but any reasonable consumer should know this guy or gal is at least part hype?  They can always say they were acting in good faith with good intentions and didn’t know the stock they sold you was gonna crash.  They can lie to you all they want about an investment and if you buy it and it tanks, you really have no evidence against the guy except what he told you and you can’t prove that.  It’s his word against yours.

 

The other big gray area is in the investment media.  There are a few objective financial reporters and financial magazines/ newsletters out there but most of these guys well hype up the stocks they own and hype up the stocks their firms are underwriting. 

 

You can’t get them for fraud because they just have to say they gave the best advice at the time for the facts they had and then they’ll throw it back in your face and say you’re supposed to be a savvy consumer and check everything out for yourself before you buy an investment vehicle.

 

On the internet, people will spam you with messages touting a stock, go in on chatrooms and newsgroups reserved for the general public to hype up a stock and set up an elaborate website for some scam or questionable company they’re hyping up to make it appear like a real winner.

 

One guy says if you’re investigating a company, watch for cash flow, where do they get the money that’s coming in the door.  Is it made by hyping up a stock, borrowing or real sales and services?

 

Whenever just about everybody is hyping up a hot, new trend through irrational exuberance and the market is going through the roof for reasons that don’t seem logical, watch out for a bubble that’s about to burst.  Never forget the great internet stock debacle. 

 

They say it’s caused by greed, the greed of the sellers, the owners, the media dudes and the general public who all want to get rich fast.  It’s the blind leading the blind, all on false hope.  Charm, charisma and hype can’t compete with good sense and rational, independent analysis.

 

Every new technological advancement that’s pretty good is always hyped up as the greatest thing ever created whereupon the wall street cats go into overdrive, competitors find a cheaper way and the industry, regardless of what it is always loses favor after a few years.  Don’t hang on to a trend for greater returns.  Make a decent profit then sell before the crash.

 

Be very skeptical about who you trust.  Don’t trust too many of them guys you see on TV hyping up stocks.  Dig further to see if they work for somebody or are they simply objective reporters trying to do a good job.

 

Don’t buy and hold for the long run because there will always be recessions.  Buy, watch and sell when you feel the market is tumbling.

 

Don’t invest in companies whose function is to invest in new companies in the latest technological trend.  When the bubble bursts, they go in a flash.

 

Beware of real estate bubbles in an area too.

 

Be wary of the hope in international stocks and funds.

 

IPOs are generally all hype.  Stay away.

 

Try #332.8097 or HG4928.5 at the library.

 

bloomberg.com, some information about this phenomena.

bollingerbands.com, stock graphical analysis.

dsm.com, direct stock market.

hulbertdigest.com, analyzes investment newsletters.

iexchange.com, report on the track records of financial analysts.

redchip.com, claims to be independent.

standardpoor.com, personalwealth.com, independent research.

valueline.com, independent research.

zacks.com, independent research.

 

How Do You Protect Yourself?

 

Financial service professionals have one objective, to make money for their firm and for themselves.  If they don’t, they’re fired.  Their best interest is always themselves, not you. 

 

It’s not even about the individual, smalltime investors anymore.  The big money is in underwriting new IPOs.  This is why you have to be careful about buying any new stock.  These financial companies who underwrite a stock (manage it going public) are thinking about making money fast, not about what great things this company will do for the world.

 

Financial analysts make money when they hype up stocks.  When they can’t recommend one anymore, rather than criticize it, they stay silent.  Why is it that there are way more buy recommendations than sell or hold?

 

You have to have the attitude that it’s them against you because it is but the great thing is that you don’t need a broker and you don’t have to listen to the guys on TV much.  You can go to websites and see what stocks are doing and analyze them for yourself. 

 

Understand the graph.  Great new companies go up like a rocket for the first one to ten years then they always go down because of competition, other new products from someone else or the institutional investors get tired of them and sell.

 

Never trust anyone with your money.

 

It has often been said that investors who are bilked out of money are at least partially responsible because it is greed that makes them fork over money to schemes by con artists and for bad advice from unscrupulous financial advisors.

 

My first rule is that nobody really needs a financial advisor (except to do taxes) because money education is not rocket science.  It’s not that hard to educate yourself about money then pick your own stocks, mutual funds and other investment vehicles.

 

If anybody phones you up claiming to be an investment advisor or representing anything involving money, offering you an investment opportunity, don’t waste your time.  Hang up.  Ignore all e-mail spam advertising investment opportunities.

 

Don’t listen to what most internet chatrooms, blogs and newsgroups say about the stock market.  Trust only reputable websites and reputable investment publications. 

 

There is a lot of hype about stocks on the TV money shows.  You have to understand the concept behind the statement, don’t ask a barber if you need a haircut.  That’s how they make their money.  They will always say yes.  The same holds true for everybody in the investment industry. 

 

They have to be bullish because that’s how they make money even if they’re lying through their teeth.  They will never tell you not to buy.  I’ve never seen one advisor recommend that you sell or don’t buy more stocks than they tell you to buy in any interview on TV.  It’s always a rosy picture, buy or hold.

 

If any telemarketer calls you about stocks, you get e-mail solicitations or you get free investment publications urging you to either invest in a certain three or four stocks or buy the subscription, don’t listen.  A good researcher goes to the good information where he already knows it is.  He doesn’t listen to anything that comes to him unsolicited. 

 

I like the guy at investors.com (Investor’s Business Daily) because I can tell he’s meticulous and sincere and I’ve been seeing him analyze stocks for ten years now so I know who he is and what he’s about.  I trust his judgment as being as good as you’re gonna get but not even he has a crystal ball.

 

There’s a Hollywood movie around called Boiler Room.  It works like this with scams in the real world.  These guys have the savvy to put together phony, shell companies, get them listed on some exchange even if it’s just OTC then hype them to death as the next big thing and they’re so smooth that suckers fall for it.

 

For financial analysts, it’s not about objective research.  It’s about one things, SELL AS MUCH STOCK AS POSSIBLE.

 

Be wary of the hype surrounding every IPO.

 

People use all kinds or clever fraud to hype stocks up on the internet by pretending to be ordinary, objective people passing off real important information.

 

Don’t trust anyone with excessive optimism.  Don’t listen to anyone’s hot tips.  Do your own research through the good investment publications.

 

I don’t want to get too paranoid but there aren’t too many good guys in the world of investing so be wary.  You can read quarterly financial statements at sec.gov and look at either the big, independent investment publications (personalwealth.com, valueline.com, money.com, thestreet.com, zacks.com, bloomberg.com) or the small, loner intellectual types (hulbertdigest.com) publishing their own.  You can usually pick out the good ones from the bad by style of writing.  The bad guys use puffery and hype.  The good guys write indepth reports.

 

Don’t be taken in by any hype.

 

Don’t invest money with small investment firms or new ones.  Stick with the established discount brokerage companies and established mutual fund companies.

 

You can do a check of the disciplinary record of stockbrokers by filing a request with the SEC at sec.gov.

 

You can easily nullify your paranoia about your stock broker by not having one, picking your own stocks, buying through a discount brokerage.

 

If you’re with a broker and feel he has overstepped his authority and/ or swindled you, report him to the SEC and file a civil lawsuit against him.  If he has a number of dissatisfied clients, file a class action lawsuit.

 

Don’t trust anything an investment ad says.

 

Watch out for all the hidden fees with mutual funds.  I read an article by a former chairman of the SEC and he tore the mutual fund industry to bits as a bunch of scammers with their hidden fees.

 

Don’t give anyone power of attorney over your money.

 

Investing in futures, options and short selling are all investments that require a good grasp of the subject in order to succeed.

 

Don’t go to free investment seminars.  They are a rah-rah pitch designed to sell you some book or tape package or even worse, the latest, new “hot” stock or fund.

 

Boiler room operations is a scam where a bunch of guys either run a legal brokerage house or pretend to.  They call people cold turkey, send out free investment letters, etc., all aimed to butter people to make them invest money in what are essentially worthless investments. 

 

The solution is to never buy from anyone soliciting with an investment opportunity.  But only through your discount brokerage once you make your own decision.

 

When there is irrational exuberance in the stock market, cease all investments in anything that’s not an old dinosaur blue chip stock.

 

Churning: The Dirty Secret of Brokers

 

Brokers have to eat and pay bills.  Buying and selling is how they earn a living. If they’re not trading, they can’t eat or pay their bills.  Churning an account is illegal but the fact is that everytime a broker buys or sells stocks for a client, he or she always makes money.  If the client ends up losing money, the broker still gets his commission.

 

Read the papers about all the convictions of people in the business, investment, religious and political fields, people who are spozed to help you but instead, they consciously rip you off or try to get you to keep making stock trades no matter how bad they look so that they can collect commissions which is all they really care about.  It’s so common it has its own term, churning.

 

Churning is a concept used by money advisors.  They constantly buy and sell your stocks not because they think it will make you more money but because they want to collect those commissions.

 

If you heard what some of these stockbrokers and investment afvisors say about investors behind their backs, you would never use one again but would instead do your own investing. 

 

Many have contempt for the people they are making money from.  It’s like they’re jealous, angry people.  I know because a few of my buddies were in this business.  Scrupulous people generally don’t get into this business.  It’s the wheeler-dealer type who’s a bit on the scam side who thrives.

 

If you really, really want investment, hire a fee only advisor, not one who earns commissions from your trades.

 

Stocks and mutual funds are not rocket science.  Don’t hire a stock broker to manage your money.  Buy your own stocks and funds.  All you have to do is buy a money magazine with an article like 10 Best Stocks then buy the top 5 using a discount broker like Ameritrade.

 

Investor Activists

 

You can rest assured that the trade groups within the investment industry (American Banking Assn., Investment Company Institute, Assn. of Financial Planners, Technet, etc.) have lobbyists in Washington to protect their interests at the expense of the public’s interest.

 

The following are some websites of organizations who want to clean up the investment industry, make companies more transparent and help the smalltime investor out.

 

foe.org/international/shareholder, confronting companies using shareholder power.

prometh.com/radical.htm, the radical capitalist

free-market magazine.

aarp.org, retired persons.

adlcio.org, union federation.

bbb.org, better business bureau.

berkshirehathaway.com, this company is used as an example of an ethical, transparent company.  read their annual report.

consumerfed.org

funddemocracy.org, mutual funds law watchdog in washington.

nasaa.org

tiaa-cref.org, teachers insurance and annuity assn. – college retirement equities fund, they discuss what they believe is the ethical way for a publicly traded company to operate.

vanguard.com/bogle, mutual funds.

 

Investors' Bill of Rights

 

The National Futures Assn., 800-676-4NFA, nfa.futures.org, puts out a free pamphlet called Investors' Bill of Rights.  The North American Securities Administrators’ Assn. does too. 

 

There are many, many regulations imposed by the government on the investment industry but a lot of people in this business are naturally arrogant and flagrantly disobey the rules because they think they are superior and everyone else are pleebes.  Don’t let them intimidate you.  If you feel taken advantage, start by speaking up to the SEC and your local district attorney’s office.

 

Basically, some of your rights are as follows:

 

Honest advertising.  Even though investment companies are supposed to register with regulatory agencies and the regulatory agencies monitor advertising sources like publications for misleading ads, some scam artists set up shop quickly, bilk some customers with unbelievable claims then move on before the complaints get to the Sec or the FTC. 

 

Just because an ad is on TV or on the radio doesn't make it legitimate.  Before you buy, contact, either the Sec, Ftc, Nfa or the Bbb to check up on the company.

 

The right to full and accurate information.

 

Full and accurate history of both the company and the person handling your account both from them and the state securities commission.

 

Full disclosure of risks, usually in writing.

 

Explanation of costs and terms.  No unforseen or hidden costs.

 

Explanation of risks.

 

Receive a copy of all completed contracts.

 

Receive regular honest account statements.

 

Have access to your funds in a timely manner and be told of any restrictions or limitations to access.

 

Receive fair and prompt service about your account with any concerns you might have.

 

High pressure sales tactics are morally wrong and suspicious.

 

Obligation to manage your money to the best of their ability.

 

Access to your funds.

 

The right to complain and seek remedy through legal and regulatory channels.

 

Insider Trading Info

 

The law states that no company executives or their relatives can benefit from insider knowledge about the company until that knowledge goes public through the media.

 

Any person who becomes an insider of a public  corporation is not allowed to use sensitive information or pass that information off to another person to trade stocks to their advantage before that information goes public. 

 

Insider trading is persons who have information about a corporation by virtue of position with the corporation and use this information to trade in securities of the corporation or to assist others to trade in securities of the corporation before that information is made available to the public.

 

The Sec’s Rule I0b-5 covers insider trading cases, the text of which is as follows:

 

It shall be unlawful for any person, directly or indirectly, by the use of any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce, or

of the mails or of any facility of any national securities exchange, to:

 

(a) employ any device, scheme or artifice to defraud;

 

(b) make any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; or

 

(c) engage in any act, practice or course of business which operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit upon any person, in connection with the purchase or sale of any security.

 

The most common type of insider trading is a case where an officer, director or other person who is involved with a corporation buys or sells the company's securities while in the possession of material, nonpublic information but Rule l0b-5 is not limited to just this scenario. 

 

Some other possible instances of insider trading are as follows:

 

A corporation either issues misleading information to the public or omits stating information it is obligated to disclose.

 

When an insider tells a friend or ally some  material, nonpublic information who uses it to trades securities, a process called "tipping" which was the basis of the Martha Stewart case.

 

General manipulation of stock prices by company insiders in any of a number of ways.

 

General manipulative behavior by stockbrokers and other securities sellers.

 

sec.gov

sedi.ca, check on what insiders are doing with their own stock.

streetinsider.com

 

Regulation Fair Disclosure/ Reg FD

 

In 2000, the SEC enacted Regulation Fair Disclosure/ Reg FD which requires companies to release important information to everybody at the same time, not just to insiders first.

 

As a result of this, companies are now releasing announcements on their websites when they have important information.  If you are a shareholder, you are entitled to see this information.  They are called webcasts.  Go to sec.gov to learn more about Reg FD.

 

The following websites are webcast intermediaries.  They show the announcements of a number of companies.

 

bestcalls.com

ccbn.com

 

Chapter 2. Investor Complaint Resources

 

Get Rid of Cold-Call Stockbrokers

 

If you get called by stockbrokers and other financial people wanting you to invest your money with them, just tell them you’re a stockbroker with Fidelity, Vanguard, etc.  By law, a stockbroker has to keep his or her account with the company they work for.  Tell the telemarketer you’re not allowed to invest with other companies.

 

Securities and Exchange Commission

(202) 942-7040

sec.gov

 

Investment Fraud Websites/ Stock Fraud Websites

 

There are a few investors recovery services around that specialize in getting money back for investors ripped off by fraudulent investment professionals but they’re far and few between.  Your best bet is to look for an investment or securities lawyer who sympathizes with your case.

 

There are securities arbitration services for investors seeking to recover stock market losses due to investment fraud or stock broker misconduct.

 

bulldogresearch.com

nasaa.org stockloss.us.com, investment fraud lawyer, specializing in stock loss and 401(k) hidden fees.

securities.state.ks.us/edu/promnote.pdf

ripoffreport.com

wallstreetinvestmentfraudlawyer.com/investor-education

theinvestorslawyer.com/common_broker_misconduct/

mark-knutson.com/ponzi/thescheme.html

securitieslaw.com, securities fraud and investor protection information

fraudrecoverycenter.com investorsrecoveryservice.com

aarp.org/money/wise_consumer/investment_fraud

corp.ca.gov/saif/saif.htm

finra.org/investors/protectyourself/investoralerts/p116996

crimesofpersuasion.com

cybersecuritieslaw.com

ebroker.com/html/articles/regular/article_fraud.art

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/investment_fraud

fdn.com

financialfraud.info

financialweb.com/skdindex.asp

financialweb.com/stockdetective

forbes.com, look up investment fraud.

fraud.org

fraud.org/tips/internet/investment.htm

ftc.gov/reports/fraud/invest.shtm

investmentfraudinfo.com

investmentfraudlaw.com

investmentu.com

investoreducation.org, the investor's clearinghouse from the alliance for investor education.

investorprotection.org

mutualfunds.                            dead website, try dotdash.com, thebalance.com and thoughtco.com
/od/investmentfraud/investment_fraud.htm

nasaa.org/investor_awareness_quiz/index.cfm

newempirelounge.com/investmentfraud.html

pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/money/swindles/swindles.txt

quatloos.com/investment_fraud.htm

scambusters.com

scams.com

sec.gov/investor/pubs/cyberfraud.htm, internet fraud: how to avoid internet investment scams.

securities.stanford.edu

securitiesfraud.org

sharesleuth.com

stockinvestmentfraud.com

stockinvestmentfraud.com

stocksinvesting.com

stockwatchers.com

usps.com/postalinspectors/fraud/invest.htm

 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

2033 K St., N.W.

Washington, Dc  20581

202-254-6387

Cftc.gov

 

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Justice Department

9th St.  and Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.

Washington, Dc  20535

202-234-3691

Fbi.gov

 

Federal Trade Commission

6th And Pennsylvania Ave. Nw

#130

Washington, Dc 20580

202-523-3598

877-382-4357

Ftc.gov

 

Housing And Urban Development Department

Interstate Land Sales Registration

Hud Building

451 7th St., S.W.  Room 6262

Washington, Dc  20410‑8000

202-755-0502

Hud.gov

 

National Association of Securities Dealers

1735 K St., N.W.

Washington, Dc  20006

202-728-8044

800-289-7999

800-289-9999

Nasd.com

Ask for a Central Registration Depository Report/ Crd on a stockbroker.

 

Securities And Exchange Commission

450 Fifth St., N.W.

Washington, Dc  20006

202-728-8233

Sec.gov/Enforce/Comctr.Htm

 

Securities Fraud Hotline

800-222-4724

 

United States Postal Service

Chief Postal Inspector

Room 3021

Washington, Dc  20260‑2100

202-268-4267

usps.gov

postalinspectors.usps.gov

 

Investment Recovery Services

 

These businesses and organizations help people who were ripped off in fraudulent stock investment schemes and some money-making scams like Ponzi schemes.

 

investorsrecoveryservice.com, investors recovery service.

ifrn165.com, investment fraud recovery network, clearwater, fl.

 

Complaints and Lawsuits Against Financial Services Companies

 

You can check out your brokerage firm and the person you're dealing with by contacting one of the Sec's Public Reference Rooms, giving them the name of your broker and asking for Form BD which is the firm's registration form. 

 

The way to avoid making complaints and filing lawsuits is to do all your research yourself and don't listen to anyone.  That way, you won't risk them losing your money. 

 

That piece of paper full of fine print you sign when you put your money into their care basically ties your hands.  Once you sign, they have the power to control your money. 

 

If you don't like what they do, you may have to accept the decision of an arbitrator unless you take your complaint to a federal district court or insert language into the original contract which protects your rights.  Either way, the hassle can be enormous and costly. 

 

Even though stockbrokers and brokerage houses are licensed and regulated, there are many con artists and fly by nighters in the field.  Check them out before you deal with them.  Investigate them through your State Securities Office, National Assn. of Securities Administrators and the Sec.

 

Stockbrokers have many ways of getting extra money from you.  The most common problem is negligence whereby the stockbroker fails to comply with an order. 

 

Another problem arises from a situation called churning.  When a stockbroker churns your account, he advises you to make a transaction which creates commissions for him instead of profits for you. 

 

A broker could falsify the paperwork on your account to give you a higher asset level than you're really worth to give you more leverage power. 

 

Some brokers steal outright from their clients. 

 

Some brokers claim to be licensed when they're not. 

 

Finally and in conjunction with churning, a stockbroker can misrepresent an investment with his own interests in mind instead of yours. 

 

If you feel you have been cheated, don't just be intimidated and walk away.  Demand answers from the broker and his firm.  Seek objective advice on how to proceed. 

 

Some cases are hard to prove, for example, intentional fraud versus straight out incompetence.  Act immediately.  Don't wait.  Keep all paperwork.  Contact your state securities office, the Nasd, Naasd and the Sec.

 

The hierarchy of complaint escalation is:

 

Complain to your broker.

 

Talk to the broker's branch manager.

 

Write to the compliance department at the firm's main office.

 

Send a copy of your letter to your state securities office or to the Office of Investor Education and Assistance at the Sec.

 

Call the Office of Consumer Affairs at 202-942-7040, the Nasd and the Naasd.

 

Choose to resolve your complaint through the courts or through binding arbitration.  Many brokerage houses have a clause in their contracts when selling securities that require you to go through arbitration to resolve a complaint rather than through the court system.

 

The Uniform Code gives investment customers the right to arbitrate their complaints as long as you do it within six years of the alleged incident. 

 

You first type up your complaint and send it to the arbitration board of the self regulating organization of your choice from the ones listed below.  They investigate and if applicable, set up a panel of from 1-3 neutral panelists to hear the case.

 

You're allowed to bring a lawyer to represent your side of the case.  There are two procedures, a small claims procedure for under $10,000 which is called the Simplified Arbitration Procedure and the other one for cases of over $10,000. 

 

A location is chosen and you sign a Submission Agreement which means that you will abide by the decisions of the board. 

 

The arbitrators are supposed to be neutral people.  For a large case over $50,000, there may be two or more arbitrators something like a mini-jury.  This is good to counteract the criticism that arbitrators in the past were bribed by the brokerage companies being sued.

 

You have to pay a filing fee to file the case.  The opposing party may file a counterclaim or may agree to settle outright.  If you don't like a certain panelist, you can request that he be replaced. 

 

The pre-trial is conducted like a court case with each side offering the other side its documents and other information for review. 

 

During the hearing, each side presents its case, offers witnesses, has the right of cross examination and closing arguments.  After the hearing, the panelists discuss the case and within 30 days mail a registered letter to both sides indicating their binding decision. 

 

Any monetary awards must be paid within 30 days.  Interest starts on them after that.  If the loser refuses to pay, go back to the board for disciplinary action.

 

ars-1.com

bbb.org

brokerarb.com

edgar-online.com

fdn.net

financialweb.com/stockdetective

fraud.org

ftc.gov, federal trade commission.

insidetheweb.com, due diligence board.

investoraid.com

investorprotection.org

mediations.com

nasaa.org

nasd.com

nasdr.com

scambusters.com

securities.stanford.edu, securities class action clearing house.

sec.gov

sec.gov/consumer/b-alert.htm

stockdetective.com

 

American Bar Association

Standing Committee On Dispute Resolution

1800 M Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20036

202-331‑2258

Abanet.org/Publiced

Education or referral to investment lawyer.

 

Investor Protection Trust

190 N. Ft. Myer Dr.

#1012

Arlington, Va 22209

Investorprotection.org

Video about handling complaint with financial professional.

 

National Association of Securities Dealers Inc.

National Hq (Nasdaq)

1735 K St. Nw

Washington, Dc 20006

202-728-8000

800-289-9999

800-289-7999

800-225-7720

Nasdaq.com

Nasdr.com

Checks on the disciplinary history of a broker for you.  They have 14 district offices.  Also call your State Securities Administration Office to check broker’s out.  They will also try to resolve your complaints regarding stocks and offer a variety of publications.

 

Public Investors Arbitration Bar Assn.

Norman, Ok

888-621-7484

404-365-0150

Piaba.org

Will recommend a lawyer for arbitration.

 

 

Arbitration Organizations

 

Many brokerages have clauses in their contracts which say you can't sue them, that you must take the case to some manner of binding arbitration.

 

brokerarb.com

sec.gov/consumer/arbproc/arb/toc.htm, article about arbitration.

 

To obtain further information, contact the Director of Arbitration at one of the following Self Regulating Organizations:

 

American Stock Exchange, Inc.

86 Trinity Pl.

Nyc 10006

212-306-1000

amex.com

 

Boston Stock Exchange, Inc.

1 Boston Pl.

Boston, Ma 02108

617-723-9500

 

Chicago Stock Exchange

440 Lasalle St.

Chicago, Il 60605

312-663-2222

 

Cincinnati Stock Exchange, Inc.

205 Dixie Terminal Bldg.

Cincinnati, Oh 45202

513-621-1410

 

Midwest Stock Exchange, Inc.

400 Lasalle St.

Chicago, Il 60605

312-663-2354

 

New York Stock Exchange, Inc.

11 Wall St.

Nyc 10005

212-656-2772

nyse.com

 

Pacific Stock Exchange

301 Pine St.

Sf, Ca 94104

415-393-4000

Fax: 415-393-5964

 

Philadelphia Stock Exchange

1900 Market St.

Philadelphia, Pa 19103

215-496-5000

800-843-7459

Fax: 215-496-5653

phix.com

 

Some general arbitration organizations are:

 

American Arbitration Assn.

335 Madison Ave.

Nyc 10017-4605

212-716-5870

Fax: 212-716-5905

800-778-7879

Fax: 877-Info-Aaa

Adr.org

National headquarters of this nonprofit organization with 37 regional offices. 

 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Office of Proceedings

1155 21st St. Nw

3 Lafayette Center

Washington, Dc 20581

202-418-5250

Cftc.gov

Fee to file depending on the amount you're suing for.

 

Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board

1150 18th St. Nw

#400

Washington, Dc 20036

202-223-9347

 

National Assn. of Securities Dealers, Inc.

33 Whitehall St.

Nyc 10004

212-858-4400

800-289-7999

nasd.com

nasdr.com

 

National Assn. of

Securities Dealers Arbitration

33 Whitehall St.

Nyc 10004

212-858-4400

800-289-9999

Nasdr.com/Pdf-Text/9890ntm.Txt

Free Mediation Booklet.

 

National Futures Assn.

200 W. Madison St.

#1600

Chicago, Il 60606

800-572-9400

800-676-4nfa

Nfa.Futures.org

 

North American Security Administrators Assn.

1 Massachusetts Ave.

#310

Washington, Dc 20001

202-737-0900

888-846-2722

888-84nasaa

nasaa.org

Will give you local referrals to check out stock brokers.

 

Public Investors Arbitration Bar Assn.

Norman, Ok

888-621-7484

404-365-0150

Piaba.org

Will recommend a lawyer for arbitration.

 

Securities Arbitration Commentator

Pob 112

Maplewood, Nj 07040

201-761-5880

For a low fee, they will tell you or your lawyer the records of several arbitrators and the awards they gave so you can determine if the arbitrator is biased for brokers or the investor and choose from there.  Will also give a referral for an arbitration lawyer.

 

Auditing Services to Audit Your Investment Accounts

 

 

If you think your investment account is being mismanaged, you can get an audit/ check up done for a fee from:

 

Green Trak

60 E. 42nd St.

Nyc 10165

800-815-3434

 

Stockbroker Analysis

576 14th Ave. S.

Naples, Fl 34102

941-261-9106

$75 an hour.

 

Securities and Exchange Commission Info

 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is a federal government regulation agency that oversees the financial brokerage business.  If you have any complaints and questions about stocks and bonds, mutual funds, futures, options, etc., this is who you contact. 

 

They have a variety of free booklets.  Some are as follows:

 

Invest  Wisely: Advice From Your Securities Industry Regulators.

 

Invest Wisely: An Introduction To Mutual Funds.

 

Questions You Should Ask About Your Investment.

 

iosco.org, international organization of securities commissions for all the countries in the world who have them.

law.uc.edu/ccl

law.uc.edu/ccl/34act/index.html, securities lawyer’s deskbook, all the laws of the sec.

seclaw.com

worthnet.com/www/seczip/index.htm

sec.gov/rules/concindx.htm

sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/webusers.htm, access to edgar filings.

sec.gov/rules/finrindx.htm, sec final rules

secinfo.com

sec.gov/enforce/litig.htm, sec litigation releases.

sec.gov/rules/proposed.shtml, sec proposed rules.

seclaw.com/secrules.htm, sec rules and regulations.

sec.gov/interps/account.shtml, sec selected staff accounting bulletins

 

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

450 5th St. Nw

Washington, Dc 20549

800-Sec-0330

202-272-2650

Fax: 202-942-9634

Help@Sec.gov

Sec.gov

 

Office of Investor Education and Assistance

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

Mail Stop 11-2

450 5th St. Nw

Washington, Dc 20549

 

Public Reference Room

202-942-8090

202-942-8092 Ttd.

 

Information Line

202-942-8088

 

Blank Forms and Publications

202-942-4040

 

Regional Offices

 

SEC Headquarters

450 Fifth Street, NW

Washington, DC 20549

(202) 942-7040

help@sec.gov

 

Northeast Regional Office

Securities and Exchange Commission

New York, NY 10048

(212) 748-8000

new york@sec.gov

 

Boston District Office

73 Tremont Street
#600

Boston, MA 02108-3912

(617) 424-5900

boston@sec.gov

 

Philadelphia District Office

The Curtis Center
#1120E

601 Walnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 19106-3322

(215) 597-3100

philadelphia@sec.gov

 

Southeast Regional Office

1401 Brickell Avenue
#200

Miami, FL 33131

(305) 536-4700

miami@sec.gov

 

Atlanta District Office

3475 Lenox Road, N.E.
#1000

Atlanta, GA 30326-1232

(404) 842-7600

atlanta@sec.gov

 

Midwest Regional Office

Citicorp Center
#1400

500 W Madison Street

Chicago, IL 60661-2511

(312) 353-7390

chicago@sec.gov

 

Central Regional Office

1801 California Street
#4800

Denver, CO 80202-2648

(303) 844-1000

denver@sec.gov

 

Fort Worth District Office

801 Cherry Street, 19th Floor

Fort Worth, TX 76102

(817) 978-3821

dfw@sec.gov

 

Salt Lake District Office

500 Key Bank Tower
#500

50 South Main Street

Salt Lake City, UT 84 144-0402

(801) 524-5796

saltlake@sec.gov

 

Pacific Regional Office

5670 Wilshire Boulevard, 11th Floor

Los Angeles, CA 90036-3648

(323) 965-3998

losangeles@sec.gov

 

San Francisco District Office

44 Montgomery Street
#1100

San Francisco, CA 94104

(415) 705-2500

sanfrancisco@sec.gov

 

Seattle Office

915 2nd Ave.

3040 Jackson Federal Bldg.

Seattle, Wa 98174

206-220-7500

 

State Securities Offices

 

Each state has its own laws and regulations for securities brokers and all types of securities, including stocks, mutual funds, commodities, real estate offerings, uninsured investment products sold by banks and others. 

 

The officials and agencies listed below enforce these laws and regulations.  Many of these offices can provide you with information to help you make informed investment decisions. 

 

State securities agencies are also responsible for preventing fraud and abuse in the sale of all but the largest securities offerings.  If you have a question or complaint about an investment you have made or are about to make, call the company or the bank involved. 

 

If your complaint or question is not resolved, call the appropriate state securities agency.  If writing, preface your letter with Securities Administration Office.

 

Alabama

770 Washington St.

#570

Montgomery, Al 36130

334-242-2984

Fax: 334-242-0240

800-222-1253

 

Alaska

Pob 110807

Juneau, Ak 99811

907-465-2521

Fax: 907-465-2549

 

Arizona

1300 W. Washington

3rd Fl.

Phoenix, Az 85007

602-542-4242

Fax: 602-594-7470

Cc.State.Az.Us

 

Arkansas

201 E. Markham

3rd Fl.

Little Rock, Ar 72201

501-324-9260

Fax: 501-324-9268

 

California

3700 Wilshire

#600

Los Angeles, Ca 90010

213-736-2741

Fax: 213-736-2117

Corp.ca.gov

 

Colorado

1580 Lincoln

#420

Denver, Co 80203

303-894-2320

Fax: 303-861-2126

 

Connecticut

260 Constitution Pla.

Hartford, Ct 06103

800-831-7225

860-240-8299

Fax: 860-240-8178

State.Ct.Us

 

Delaware

State Office Bldg.

820 N. French St.

8th Fl.

Wilmington, De 19801

302-577-2515

Fax: 302-655-0576

 

Dc - City of Washington

717 14th St. Nw

Washington, Dc 20005

202-626-5152

Fax: 202-393-1389

 

Florida

101 E. Gaines St.

Tallahassee, Fl 32399

850-488-9805

Fax: 850-681-2428

800-372-8792

(800) 438‑5326

 

Georgia

2 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.

#802, W. Tower

Atlanta, Ga 30334

404-656-2894

Fax: 404-657-8410

 

Hawaii

Pob 40

Honululu, Hi 96810

808-586-2744

800-468-4644

Fax: 808-586-2740

Hawaii.gov/Dbedt

 

Idaho

Pob 83720

Boise, Id 83720

888-346-3378

208-334-3684

Fax: 208-332-8098

State.Id.Us/Finance/Dof

 

Illinois

200 Lincoln Tower

520 S. 2nd St.

Springfield, Il 62701

217-782-2256

800-628-7937

Sos.State.Il.Us

 

Indiana

302 W. Washington

#E-111

Indianapolis, In 46204

317-232-6681

800-223-8791

Fax: 317-233-3675

Ai.org/Sos

 

Iowa

Lucas State Office Bldg.

2nd Fl.

Des Moines, Ia 50319

515-281-4441

Fax: 515-281-6467

State.Ia.Us/Government/Com/Ins/Security

Kansas

618 S. Kansas Ave.

2nd Fl.

Topeka, Ks 66603

913-296-3307

800-232-9580

Fax: 913-296-6872

Cjnetworks.com/~Ksecom

 

Kentucky

477 Versailles Rd.

Frankfort, Ky 40601

800-223-2579

502-573-3390

Fax: 502-573-8787

Dfi.State.Ky.Us

 

Louisiana

8660 United Plaza Blvd.

2nd Fl.

Baton Rouge, La 70809

504-925-4512

 

Maine

121 State House Sta.

Augusta, Me 04333

207-624-8551

Fax: 207-624-8590

 

Maryland

200 St. Paul Pl.

20th Fl.

Baltimore, Md 21202

410-576-6360

Fax: 410-576-6532

 

Massachusetts

1 Ashburton Pl.

#1701

Boston, Ma 02108

617-727-3548

800-269-5428

Fax: 617-248-0177

 

Michigan

Pob 222

Lansing, Mi 48909

517-334-6212

Fax: 517-334-6155

Cis.State.Mi.Us/Corp

 

Minnesota

133 E. 7th St.

St. Paul, Mn 55101

612-296-4026

Fax: 612-296-4328

800-657-3602

 

Mississippi

Pob 136

Jackson, Ms 39205/

202 N. Congress St.

#601

Jackson, Ms 39201

601-359-6371

Fax: 601-359-2894

 

Missouri

Pob 1276

Jefferson City, Mo 65102

573-751-4136

800-721-7996

Fax: 573-526-3124

Mose.Sos.State.Mo.Us

 

Montana

Pob 4009

Helena, Mt 59604

406-444-2040

Fax: 406-444-3497

800-332-6148

 

Nebraska

Pob 95006

Lincoln Ne 68509

402-471-3445

Ndof.org

 

Nevada

555 E. Washington Ave.

#5200

Lv, Nv 89101

702-486-2440

Fax: 702-486-2452

(800) 758‑6440

 

New Hampshire

204 State House

Concord, Nh 03301

603-271-1463

Fax;  603-271-7933

 

New Jersey

Pob 47029

Newark, Nj 07101

201-504-3600

Fax: 201-504-3601

 

New Mexico

725 St. Michaels Dr.

Santa Fe, Nm 87501

505-827-7140

Fax: 984-0617

 

New York

120 Broadway

23rd Fl.

Nyc 10271

212-416-8200

Fax: 212-416-8816

 

North Carolina

300 N. Salisbury St.

#100

Raleigh, Nc 27603

919-733-3924

Fax: 919-821-0818

800-688-4507

State.Nc.Us/Secstate

 

North Dakota

600 East Blvd.

Bismarck, Nd 58505

701-224-2910

800-297-5124

Fax: 701-255-3113

Ohio

77 S. High St.

22nd Fl.

Columbus, Oh 43215

614-644-7381

Fax: 614-466-3316

Securities.State.Oh.Us

 

Oklahoma

1st National Center

120 N. Robinson

#860

Oklahoma City, 73102

405-235-0230

Fax: 405-280-7742

Lklaoss.State.Ok.Us/~Osc

 

Oregon

350 Winter St. Ne

#21

Salem, Or 97310

503-378-4387

Fax:  503-378-4178

Cbs.Or.Us/External/Dfcs

 

Pennsylvania

Eastgate Bldg.

1010 N. 7th St.

2nd Fl.

Harrisburg, Pa 17102

717-787-8061

(800) 654‑5984

800-600-0007

Fax: 717-783-5122

Rhode Island

233 Richmond  St.

#232

Providence, Ri 02903

401-277-3048

Fax: 401-273-5202

 

South Carolina

1000 Assembly St.

Columbia, Sc 29201

803-734-9916

800-734-1087

Fax: 803-734-2164

 

South Dakota

118 W. Capitol Ave.

Pierre, Sd 57501

605-773-4823

Fax:  605-773-5953

 

Tennessee

680 Davy Crockett Tower

500 J. Robertson Pkwy.

Nashville, Tn 37243

615-741-2947

800-863-9117

Fax: 615-532-8375

 

Texas

Pob 13167

Austin, Tx 78711

512-305-8300

Fax: 512-305-8310

Ssb.State.Tx.Us

Utah

Pob 146760

Salt Lake City, Ut 84114

801-530-6600

800-721-Safe

Fax; 801-530-6600

Commerce.State.Ut.Us

 

Vermont

89 Main St.

Drawer 20

Montpelier, Vt 05620

802-828-3420

Fax: 802-828-2896

State.Vt.Us/Bis

 

Virginia

Pob 1197

Richmond, Va 23218

804-371-9051

800-552-7945

Fax: 804-371-9911

State.Va.Us/Scc

 

Washington

Pob 9033

Olympia, Wa 98507

360-902-8760

Fax: 360-586-5068

800-372-8303

Wa.gov/Dfi/Securities

 

West Virginia

1900 Kanawha Blvd. E.

#118 W.

Charleston, Wv 25305

304-558-2257

Fax: 304-344-2229

 

Wisconsin

Pob 1768

Madison, Wi 53702

608-266-3431

800-47-Check

Fax: 608-256-1259

Badger.State.Wi.Us/Agencies/Dfi

 

Wyoming

State Capitol Bldg.

Cheyenne, Wy 82002

307-777-7370

Fax: 307-777-5339

Soswy.State.Wy.Us

 

Puerto Rico

600 Centro Europa Bldg.

1492 Ponce De Leon Ave.

San Juan, Pr 00907

787-723-3131

Fax: 787-723-4042

 

Securities Law Websites

 

sec.gov/complaints.html, 202 942 7040

 

seclaw.com

securities.stanford.edu, securities class action clearinghouse.

corporatecrimereporter.com, corporate crime reporter, legal newsletter on corporate prosecutions

sipc.org, securities investor protection corporation: pays if brokerage fails

law.uc.edu/ccl/34forms/index.html, free securities forms from the securities lawyer's deskbook.

msrb.org, municipal securities rulemaking board.

securities.stanford.edu, securities class action clearinghouse.

law.uc.edu/ccl/index.html, securities lawyer's deskbook

law.uc.edu/ccl/xyz/sldtoc.html, securities lawyer's deskbook

nasd.com

nasdr.com, nasd regulation-code of arbitration.

finra.org/investors/index.htm, financial industry regulatory authority, investor information including background checks on brokers and brokerage firms

securities.stanford.edu, securities class action clearinghouse

securitieslaw.com, securities fraud and investor protection

siaonline.org, securities industry association.

 

Securities Fraud Lawyers/ Investment Fraud Lawyers

 

Investment fraud lawyers occasionally represent the white collar criminals but more and more, they are taking on cases of investors who have been swindled by unscrupulous money managers, brokers, etc.  If you feel your financial services analyst ripped you off somehow, don’t be shy about going to an investment fraud lawyer.

 

investmentfraudlawyers.com

investmentfraudlaw.com

 

attorneysforinvestors.com

crosbyhiggins.com, new york corporate litigation.

dicarlolaw.com

financialfraud.info

investmentfraudattorney.com

investmentfraudlawyerblog.com, atlanta, ga.

investorsrecoveryservice.com, investors recovery service.

stockloss.us.com, investment fraud lawyer, specializing in stock loss and 401(k) hidden fees.

securitiesarbitrations.com

securitiesfraud.org

stockbrokerfraud.com

stockbrokerfraud.com, investment fraud lawyer, securities arbitration lawyer.

stockfraudusa.com

stockinvestmentfraud.com, lawyer referrals.

stockmarketloss.com, ohio securities fraud lawyer.

stumppbond.com

wallstreetfraud.com

zamansky.com

brokerfraudattorneys.us

 

Chapter 3. Crime in the Workplace

 

Commercial Crime/ White Collar Crime

 

Financial Crime is any white collar crime where somebody steals money by shuffling papers and computer bytes around.  Money laundering, computer theft, forgery and ambezzlement are quite popular.

 

Commercial criminals, corporate raiders could be either or all of the following in a publicly traded corporation; CEO, executives, shareholders with 5+ % of the shares, new CEO brought in to restructure the company, large investment companies, money manager of mutual fund, retirement fund, etc., anyone that has a large stake in the corporation. 

 

Basically, the trend is that one or several of the players get together and decide that the particular corporation is a cash cow ripe for the pickings.

 

It could be a corporation that's doing great or a fledging one, it doesn't really matter.  What matters is that the players can manipulate the situation such that stock rises in the short term very quickly, within 18 months then  they cash in their stocks/ stock options, make their killing and get out either leaving a bankrupt company, merged company or company that basically exists on paper and is dead in the water.

 

Typically, one of the players such as a new CEO will try to get hype in the media by quickly firing a bunch of employees, selling off some divisions, moving some of the operations to Mexico, creating new product lines, etc., in an effort to give off the impression that they're restructuring and getting aggressive so that the stock value rises but the poiint is that all they care about is the value of the stock not about the growth of the corporation itself such that they're basically plundering the corporation, taking their profit and getting out. 

 

Watch out for hype about corporate restructuring or a merger.  It may be a good thing but it may be just a short term gain before the stock crashes.  In any event, although good for the guys at the top, corporate raiding is deadly for the employees and other people involved with the corporation.

 

Nowadays, you got a host of companies being found out for shoddy accounting practices and all kinds of other indiscretions.  The truth is that these commercial crimes generally steal way more than your average bank heist but up until recently the penalties have been far less. 

 

I hope the government holds true to its promise to throw all people in the financial investing industry and corporate executives who steal/ extort money in jail for a long, long time, at least ten years, to get the message out that you don't mess with other people's money regardless of where it is, either a corner store hold-up or the guy in the office messing with the computer. 

 

Money in fines is not enough punishment because there’s no incentive not to do it again if the punishment is just money and the risk of getting caught is still relatively low.

 

Major media doesn’t like to cover commercial crime in their news reports because they’re kinfolk with these corporate criminals.  They’d rather do a story on the poor black guy who stole a car then went on a rampage in a police chase. 

 

Collusion is a dirty little secret of Wall Street.  The boys in the backroom are all scratching each other’s backs, even the media guys are hanging out with CEOs and reporting favorably on their companies in return for a favor.

 

There are even politicians “owned” by Wall Street.  They vote on bills for Wall Street over more protection for the people.

 

Beyond collusion, creative accounting to puff up the company’s book is big.  I read a book by Arthur Levitt, a former SEC Chairman, who detailed a lot of these techniques.

 

If a CEO gets to pick his own board of directors then they’re all in bed together.  In order to run an ethical company, the CEO must be independent from the board.  They should feel free to oppose him.  They should be independent in order to watch each other for possible wrong doing or poor work in general.

 

We need more ethical journalists covering corporate crime and more police investigators on the trail of corporate crime.  Commercial crimes also span:

 

Environmental crimes.

 

Occupational health and safety.

 

Deceptive advertising.

 

Misrepresenting the product.

 

Fraud in the product like selling a concoction as pure orange juice.

 

Consumer safety issues.

 

Making deals with politicians for favor.

 

Bribing government officials to look the other way like inspectors.

 

Price fixing.

 

Monopolizing the market.

 

Healthcare companies denying claims unjustly.

 

Insurance companies denying claims unjustly.

 

Fraudulent bankruptcy.

 

Beyond actual crimes, the corporations employ many lobbyists in grey areas to preserve their interests not to mention how much money they contribute to “friendly” politicians.  They also use other questionable tactics like:

 

Silence opposing big mouths by any means possible.

 

Set up front groups to advance their interests while posing as concerned citizens.

 

Get rid of aggressive, ethical journalists through the buddy network between corporations. 

 

Corporations own the media so they can report what they want.

 

The current “successful” journalists hosting their own shows are the pro-corporate mouthpieces who openly support the corporatization of the world.

 

Libel laws make it tough for ethical people to want to report something lest they be sued.  Even if it’s the truth, they’re still sued and end up wasting away in court.

 

Are the superstores that open in some areas doing the right thing by trashing all the mom and pop businesses by their presence?

 

Those with the power reward those who serve it and trash those who undermine it even when the latter are ethically right.

 

Corporations now have their logos plastered in some museums for giving them endorsements.

 

Several years ago I didn’t know why all those people were protesting whenever there was a meeting of world leaders anywhere. 

 

It’s because at heart, the political and corporate forces of the world want to make everything into one big homogenous corporate country, the New World Order, controlled by them and whatever they say goes. 

 

We the little guys either get in line and play the game or be branded as outsiders who can’t earn a living because we’re not part of this system.  Maybe it sounds far-fetched but this is the direction the corporate-political world is going.

 

If you know someone you don't like who's systematically and substantially evading taxes, you can claim a reward by turning them in.  Section 7623 of the IRS Code authorizes a reward for turning anyone in who violates federal tax law. 

 

You have to fill in Form 211 and use your real name to claim it.  Mail the completed form to Informant's Claim Examiner at the nearest IRS Office to where you live.

 

The IRS says they'll keep your name confidential such that the person you turned in will never find out it was you who did it. 

 

Rewards are based on the value of the information given and the amount recovered.  There are three different scales, generally 1, 5 and 10% of the first $75,000 recovered plus lower percentages for more up to $100,000.  Send a letter to:

 

Criminal Investigative Division

Irs

Washington, Dc 20224

irs.gov

 

The book Conspiracy of Fools is the story of the fiasco of the corporation Enron.

 

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 has given the SEC (sec.gov) more powers in dealing with corporate executives in publicly traded organizations.

 

Books about commercial crime are at #364.160-169 or HV6691 to HV6769 at the library.

 

White Collar Crime Websites

 

 

fincen.gov, fincen (financial crimes enforcement network) 

stopfraud.gov, the financial fraud enforcement task force, hold accountable those who helped bring about the last financial crisis and to prevent another crisis

 

securities.stanford.edu/companies.html, stanford securities class action clearinghouse; case index of companies facing federal securities class actions.

fightingforyou.com, lawyer, helping victims of corporations get the retribution and justice they deserve.

corporatecrimereporter.com
corpwatch.org, corp watch, holding corporationa accountable

fbi.gov/publications, look up financial crime.

treas.gov/fincen, financial crimes enforcement network, fincen.

sec.gov/consumer/cyberfr.htm, on-line investment fraud prevention from the sec

 

dtex-investigative.com/issue.htm, d/tex investigative consulting is dedicated to investigating and recovering losses for victims of fraud, embezzlement and white collar crime.

ethicscheck.com, do a background check on people or have your financial records audited.

corporatenarc.com

sec.gov/divisions/enforce/claims.htm, investors claims funds, lists the cases in which the sec has recovered money for investors through its enforcement actions.

ethicscheck.com, do a background check on people or have your financial records audited.

corporatenarc.com

sec.gov/divisions/enforce/claims.htm, investors claims funds, lists the cases in which the sec has recovered money for investors through its enforcement actions.

occ.treas.gov/enforce/enf_search.htm, occ enforcement actions

usa.gov/citizen/topics/money_taxes.shtml

stopcorporateabuse.org

americangreed.cnbc.com

whitecollarfraud.com

8009endfraud.com, 800 9 end fraud, law office, refers to fraud of government contracts.

adbusters.org, 800-663-1243

cfenet.com, certified fraud examiners.

corporatepredators.org

corpwatch.org

culturejam.com, culturejam.org

essential.org

essential.org/monitor

fbi.gov

financialweb.com/stockdetective

fletc.gov, federal law enforcement training center, georgia.  runs the financial fraud institute for government agents.

ftc.gov

fugitive.org/crimeprevention/white/whitecollarcrime

multinationalmonitor.org, watch corporations.

nasdr.com, 800 289 9999, national assn. of securities dealers, check to see if a broker was ever disciplined.

opensecrets.org, politics.

sec.gov

sec.gov/litigation/complaints

securities.stanford.edu, database of all federal class action securities fraud lawsuits.

usdoj.gov

 

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network

Dept. of Treasury

800-Sos-Buck

703-905-6096

ustreas.gov/fincen

 

International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators

415-884-6600

iafct.org

 

National Assn. of Securities Dealers

800-289-9999

301-590-6500

nasdr.com

Free disciplinary report on licensed investment brokers.

 

National Business Crime

Information Hotline

800-241-5689

If you know someone commiting any type of crime in business and you want to get them in trouble, give an anonymous report at this phone number.  The authorities will not arrest anybody immediately but investigate the situation.

 

National Finance Adjusters

410-728-2400

nfa.org

 

National Financial Fraud Exchange

Reston, Va

800-822-0416

They will check up on an advisor for you for a fee of about $50 from their database.  They don't cover insurance agents. 

 

National White Collar Crime Center

804-323-3563

nw3c.org

usdoj.gov

 

SEC

Division of Enforcement

202-942-4000

202-942-4542

202-942-8090, check on licensing status of stockbroker.

sec.gov

Report insider trading and other crimes.

 

Securities Information Center

617-345-4900

secic.com

Database of forged, counterfeit, lost and stolen securities.  Used by investment investigators, not directly available to the public as far as I know although you can make a request through an investigator.

 

Time Finance Adjusters

800-874-0510

tfaguide.com

 

Chapter 4. Whistleblow/ Tell on the Bad Guys at Work

 

Whistleblower Info

 

If you see something being done on the job that’s morally wrong, you should report it to the police.  There are laws in place saying that whistleblowers can’t be fired for whistleblowing.

 

On a bad side, even though there are whistleblower laws in place to protect people who expose wrongdoing, laws can’t dictate the way they’ll be blackballed and shunned even if they keep their jobs. 

 

Who wants to work in a place where everybody hates them or at least avoids them because they have been stigmatized as a big mouth, tattle-tailer, whistle blower?

 

I acknowledge that it’s not easy to do the right thing in some circumstances especially if it’s where you work but your conscience should be your guide throughout life, even if the cost is high. 

 

I recently saw some FDA whistleblowers say they had to do the right thing by exposing drug test cover-ups because they had to live with themselves. 

 

If you have a case against somebody with facts, not lies and you want publicity, make a video and put it on youtube.com.  If it’s good, the mainstream media will pick it up and interview you.

 

angelfire.com/nj/jhgraf/anid.html, a personal account about american government conspiracies by a whistleblower.

answers.com/topic/whistleblower

asacon.com/oalj/libwhist.htm, whistleblower law library.

bbc.co.uk/consumer/tv_and_radio/whistleblower/index.shtml, a programme which investigates anti-social or criminal practices in organisations

dol.gov/compliance/topics/whistleblower.htm, labor.

employeeissues.com/whistleblower.htm

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/allen_jones_whistleblower, pharmaceutical industry.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/anthony_russo_whistleblower, pentagon papers.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/david_graham_whistleblower, fda whistleblower.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/national_security_whistleblowers_coalition

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/whistleblower

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/whistleblower_magazine

jeffreywigand.com, tobacco whistleblower.

oalj.dol.gov/libwhist.htm, oalj law library

osc.gov/wbdisc.htm, u.s. office of special counsel.

osha.gov/dep/oia/whistleblower, health and safety.

whistleblower.org

whistleblower.org, government accountability project.

whistleblower.ucsf.edu

whistleblowerlaws.com

whistle-blower-net.com

whistleblower-net.de, germany.

whistleblowers.org, national whistleblower center.

 

Some Whistleblower/ Crime Phone Numbers in the Federal Government

 

fic.info.gov, government telephone book.

fbi.gov/contact/fo/fo.htm#cities, federal bureau of investigation

usdoj.gov/dea/contactinfo, drug enforcement agency.

 

Army Whistleblower Hotline

800-752-9747

 

Army Whistleblower Hotline

800-424-9098

Report fraud and corruption by contractors.

 

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives

888-atf-tips, general tips

888-atf-fiire, arson hotline

888-atf-bomb, bomb hotline

800-atf-guns, guns

800-659-6242, stolen, hijacked or seized cigarettes

800-800-3855, suspicious people buying fertilizer

 

Department of Homeland Security

Federal Computer Incident Hotline

(888) 282-0870

ready.gov

 

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Whistleblower Hotline

800-869-4499

fbi.gov/contact/fo/fo.htm#cities

 

Federal Emergency

Management Agency

Fraud Hotline

800-323-8603

fema.gov

 

Federal Trade Commission

Consumer Fraud Complaints

877-FTC-HELP

877-ID-THEFT, Identity Theft Hotline

ftc.gov

 

Internal Revenue Service

Criminal Investigations

800-829-0433

irs.gov

Call when you suspect a violation of the tax code.  You’re eligible for a reward in some cases.

 

Navy Whistleblower Hotline

800-522-3451

 

Taxpayer Complaint

Hotline Number

800 audtime

irs.gov

Complain about the Irs.

 

Transportation Security Agency

Security Concerns

(866) 289-9673

 

U.S. Customs

800-BE-ALERT

cbp.gov

Drug Smuggling Hotline.

 

U.S. Marshals Service

Fugitive Tip Hotline

800-336-0102

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of Agriculture

800-424-9121

usda.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Dept of Commerce

800-424-5197

doc.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Dept. of Education

800-647-8733

ed.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of Energy

800-541-1625

doe.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of the Interior

800-424-5081

doi.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of Justice

800-869-4466

usdoj.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of Labor

800-347-3756

dol.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

State Dept.

202-647-3320

state.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of Transportation

800-424-9071

dot.gov

 

Whistleblower Hotline

Department of the Treasury

Internal Revenue Service

800-359-3898

ustreas.gov

 

IRS Whistleblower Reward Service

 

 

If you know someone you don't like who's systematically and substantiaslly evading taxes, you can claim a reward by turning them in.  Section 7623 of the IRS Code authorizes a reward for turning anyone in who violates federal tax law. 

 

You have to fill in Form 211 and use your real name to claim it.  Mail the completed form to Informant's Claim Examiner at the nearest IRS Office to where you live. 

 

The IRS says they will keep your name confidential such that the person you turned in will never find out it was you who did it. 

 

Rewards are based on the value of the information given and the amount recovered.  There are three different scales, generally 1, 5 and 10% of the first $75,000 recovered plus lower percentages for more, up to $100,000. 

 

Refer to Section 7623 of the IRS Code and fill out Form 211.

 

Criminal Investigative Division

Irs

Washington, Dc 20224

202-622-3200

Irs.gov

 

Irs Internal Security

202-622-4610

Watches over unscrupulous employees.

 

Whistleblower Lawyers

 

employmentlawgroup.net, based in washington d.c.

fraudhotline.com, law firm, providing representation for qui tam whistleblower actions under the false claims act.

lawyers.com

qui-tam-attorney.com, new york city firm, focusing on whistleblower or qui tam cases under the false claims act.

warrenbensonlaw.com, san diego firm emphasizing whistleblower cases.

whistleblower.info, whistleblower law protection act, loevy and loevy, the law firm dedicated to protecting the rights of fraud whistleblowers.

whistleblower.labovick.com, whistleblower lawyer and attorney labovick law firm, florida

whistleblower.lawyersandsettlements.com, whistleblower lawyers, articles, resources, news, forum and stories.

whistleblowerlawyerblog.com

whistleblower-lawyer-referral.com

yourlawyer.com, qui tam whistleblower law.

whistlebloweraid.com