fbpx

Financial Advisor Timothy Scherwa (Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC) Customer Complaints

The Wolper Law Firm, P.A. is currently investigating claims against Timothy Scherwa, a former Financial Advisor at Wells Fargo in Morris Plains, NJ, who is currently employed at Capitol Securities Management.  Timothy Scherwa has been in the securities industry since 1997 and previously worked at Morgan Stanley.

According to publicly available records released by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), o September 24, 2018, FINRA sanctioned Timothy Scherwa after finding that he allegedly “exercised discretionary trading authority by executing 382 trades in 12 non-discretionary customer accounts without written authorization from the customers and without prior written acceptance of the accounts as discretionary from his member firm. The findings stated that Scherwa falsely stated on three firm annual compliance certifications that he did not have accounts for which he exercised discretion over trading activities.”  Timothy Scherwa was suspended for two months and fined.

For a full copy of the FINRA sanction, click https://brokercheck.finra.org/individual/summary/2743773

In addition, Timothy Scherwa was terminated by Wells Fargo in 2017 for the same unauthorized trading that prompted the FINRA sanction.

Unauthorized trading is strictly prohibited by FINRA rules.  Before a transaction can be entered in a customer account, the Financial Advisor must first obtain verbal or written authorization from the client.  In the absence of authorization, the transaction is subject to rescission by the customer.

Financial advisors have a legal and regulatory obligation to recommend only suitable investments that are appropriate for their clients’ needs and objectives. Their employing brokerage firm has a legal and regulatory obligation to supervise the Financial Advisors’ sales practices and dealings with clients.  To the extent any of these duties are breached, the customer may be entitled to a recovery of his or her investment losses.

If you or someone you know was a customer of Timothy Scherwa and you experienced investment losses, please contact the Wolper Law Firm, P.A. at 800.931.8452 or by email at mwolper@wolperlawfirm.com to discuss your specific situation and the legal options available.  The Wolper Law Firm, P.A. represents investors nationwide in securities litigation and arbitration.

Matt Wolper, the Managing Principal of the Wolper Law Firm, P.A., is a trial lawyer who has handled hundreds of securities cases during his career involving a wide range of products, strategies and securities.  Prior to representing investors, he was a partner with a national law firm, where he represented some of the largest banks and brokerage firms in the world in securities matters.

Attorney Matthew Wolper

Attorney Matthew WolperMatt Wolper is a trial lawyer who focuses exclusively on securities litigation and arbitration. Mr. Wolper has handled hundreds of securities matters nationwide before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), American Arbitration Association (“AAA”), JAMS, and in state and federal court. Mr. Wolper has handled and tried cases involving complex financial products and strategies ranging from traditional stocks and bonds to options, margin and other securities-based lending products, closed/open-end mutual funds, structured products, hedge funds, and penny stocks. [Attorney Bio]