Category: Financial Exploitation

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Consumers should be aware that insurance companies can raise the Cost of Insurance (COI) rates on non-guaranteed life insurance products, resulting in higher monthly policy charges. When there is a change in expectations as to future experience, insurance companies can increase the current COI rates to no greater […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Seniors lose an estimated $36.5 billion annually nationwide to elder abuse, according to a recent report from San Francisco-based True Link Financial. In any given five-year period, 37 percent of the elderly population is affected by financial elder abuse. Financial elder abuse is widespread but among the most […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Although insurance agents and companies often pitch the benefits of deferred annuities, it is important for consumers, particularly elderly consumers, to be aware of the risks as well. First, consumers should be aware of some of the marketing and sales schemes used to sell annuities. If you have […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The Securities and Exchange Commission issued guidance this week regarding their whistleblower protections. This reinforced their stance that whistleblowers are protected against retaliation even if they report internally within their company, rather than to the agency, first. The Dodd-Frank Act, which created the SEC whistleblower program, had whistleblower […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration panel recently ordered Morgan Stanley to pay $2.4 million to a group of physicians and their family members. The physicians had accused former Morgan Stanley broker Steven Mark Wyatt of unauthorized and excessive stock-market trading. According to the lawyer for the […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Annuities are complex products that often have hidden fees and costs. It is recommended that consumers carefully review any policy and consider their options before purchasing any annuity policy. Both indexed and fixed annuities have risks for the consumer. Penalties such as surrender charges and forfeiture charges can […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Thanks to new legislation recently signed by Governor Jerry Brown, insurance carriers in California will no longer be allowed to levy surrender charges against a policy’s death benefit. California elder abuse attorneys say that the law, which takes effect on January 1, 2016, will protect more senior citizens. […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER A recent annuity fraud case in California illustrates the danger that annuities can pose to people’s finances, especially when it comes senior citizens. An insurance agent in Palm Desert was recently sentenced to more than nine years in prison and ordered to pay $3.4 million in restitution for […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER According to a Santa Rosa police sergeant, the Santa Rosa police recently arrested a self-employed counselor for elderly clients on suspicion of financial elder abuse. The suspect is accused of stealing $26,000 from an elderly client over four months. According to Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Lisa Banayat, the […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The Securities and Exchange Commission paid out $3 million to a whistleblower who helped the commission crack a complex fraud case. The whistleblower, a company insider, received the third-highest award given by the SEC whistleblower program thus far. The whistleblower’s tip led to related actions, and gave very […]