ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER False Claims Whistleblower Cases Awards The False Claims Act allows private persons (known as “relators” similar to “whistleblowers”) to file a lawsuit[1] against individuals, businesses and other entities that have directly or indirectly defrauded the federal government.  2017 was a banner year for relator/whistleblower cases under the False […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Financial Elder Abuse And Investment Accounts Seventy percent of personal wealth in the U.S. is held by seniors, and the senior population is growing rapidly. Ten thousand Americans turn 65 years old every day, a pace that won’t slow down until around 2030. As one regulator put it, […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Beware the Sales Push on Indexed Universal Life Insurance Life Insurance and Retirement Savings Indexed universal life insurance policies (IULs) have been around for years. The sales pitch is always better, tax-deferred, returns on investment.  Some insurance carriers are shifting focus entirely from indexed annuities to IULs as […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER FINRA Cracking Down on Faulty Annuity Replacements Cracking Down on Exploitation The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) is the independent authority that governs the nation’s financial industry, including the sale of annuities to American consumers. Lately, FINRA has begun to look closely at brokers who churn their clients’ […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Government Agencies and the Fiduciary Rule Putting You First Last year, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced its fiduciary rule which applies primarily to retirement investment advisors; the rule requires your advisor to put your interests first when it comes to certain retirement savings recommendations. Recently, the Securities […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Identity Theft and Credit Reporting Bank and Lender Obligations Each year millions of Americans are victims of identity theft in countless ways. Thieves access bank accounts, credit cards, online payment services, and home equity lines of credit. The consequences for the victim can be more than just the […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Financial Elder Abuse Financial elder abuse strikes seniors in San Mateo County and throughout California every day. Often, the incidents pass unreported because of shame or embarrassment or because of memory loss or other cognitive impairment that prevents the victim for remembering or understanding his or her financial […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Whole and Universal Life Insurance Whole and Universal (a mix of whole and term) life insurance policies are sold by agents as tax-deferred savings vehicles. Often the sales pitch to younger consumers is for retirement or education savings.  For seniors, the pitch includes retirement savings and death benefits […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Government Announces Record Whistleblower Awards Recently, two government agencies reported record whistleblower awards to be paid out on two separate cases.[1]  In the first, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported that two whistleblowers would receive a combined $61 million in awards.  The SEC’s previous record was a […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Illegal Churning of Accounts Securities Fraud and Financial Elder Abuse A recent Southern California case of stockbroker churning reveals the seriousness of allegations of broker misconduct, especially when the misconduct targets seniors. Churning means excessive trading by a broker in a client’s account largely to generate commissions. Stock […]