NOTE: Offers of Settlement (OS) and Letters of Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent (AWC) are entered into by Respondents without admitting or denying the allegations, but consent is given to the described sanctions and to the entry of findings.

2005
UNDISCLOSED SETTLEMENTS/GUARANTEEING AGAINST LOSSES

Lieb attempted to compensate a public customer for penalties incurred when withdrawals from the customer’s IRA account were not returned to the account in a timely manner. Lieb wrote a personal check payable to the customer without informing his member firm that he had attempted to compensate the customer, and without obtaining authority from his firm to settle the loss in this manner. 

Fined $5,000; Suspended 10 days in all capacities.

Haskell participated in private securities transactions without providing written or oral notification to, or receiving prior written approval from, his member firm. He settled a customer complaint and did not inform his member firm of the customer’s complaints, or of his agreement to personally help repay the notes to the customer. 

Fined $5,000; Suspended 6 months in all capacities; Requalify as General Securities Representative 

McClure offered to share in losses in a public customer’s securities account. 

Fined $5,000; Suspended 15 business days all capacities.

In an attempt to settle a complaint by a public customer, Duque proposed settlement terms, and made settlement payments, to the customer without obtaining written authorization from his member firm. He failed to respond to NASD requests for an on-the-record interview. 

Barred

Donnerstag entered into a settlement agreement with a public customer without his member firm’s knowledge or approval, and failed to respond to NASD requests for information. 

Barred

Bestine settled a complaint with a public customer without the approval or authority of his member firm. 

Fined $5,000; Suspended 6 months in all capacities

Udell made misrepresentations in selling long-term callable certificates of deposit (CDs) to public customers in that he falsely

• represented that the customers could redeem a callable CD prior to maturity by paying a penalty of one percent of the principal or six months interest;
• assured customers that the bank was likely to call the long-term CD within a year or two; 
• told customers that they could redeem the long-term CDs after one or two years; 
• told a customer that the market value of her long-term callable CD reported on her account statement was an error and would be corrected to reflect the full premium paid in the next month’s statement; and 
• instructed a customer to ignore the true maturity date of the customer’s long-term CD. 

In connection with the sale of long-term callable CDs and losses incurred due to operational errors, Udell entered into settlements of complaints with public customers without notifying and receiving approval from his member firm. 

Udell was Fined $15,000 and Suspended 4 months in all capacities.

Quigley misrepresented in written correspondence to a public customer that his initial investment in variable annuities was guaranteed against loss by Quigley’s member firm and the variable annuity companies. Quigley failed to follow a public customer’s order to liquidate securities to avoid losses; effected unauthorized trades in the customer’s account; and executed a personal note for the customer that settled losses already incurred in the account and guaranteed against future losses in the customer’s account without providing notice to his member firm. 

Quigley was Barred.

Houser entered into a settlement agreement with public customers without the knowledge or approval of her member firm. She falsified promissory notes she tendered to public customers in connection with the settlement agreement by drafting the notes on the letterhead of a company where she was employed as a consultant and by falsely identifying herself on the notes as a company vice president, creating the false impression that the company issued the notes, without the company’s knowledge or consent. 

Houser was Barred.

Peterson failed to effect promptly move variable annuity sub-accounts in response to a public customer’s direction. In an effort to settle the customer's complaint (but without notifying his BD), Peterson then attempted to pay the customer for the loss caused by the delay. Peterson failed to respond to NASD requests for information and documents in a timely manner. 

Fined $15,000 and suspended 13 months in all capacities.

Without the knowledge or approval of Otero's member firm, he wrote checks totaling $404 to a public customer to prevent the customer from making complaints concerning contingent deferred sales charges.

Fined $3,500 and suspended 10 business days in all capacities.

Fukano guaranteed a public customer against losses in her accounts on several occasions and attempted to settle the customer’s complaint concerning losses without informing and obtaining authorization from his member firm. 

Fined $5,000 and suspended five months in all capacities.