Ross Adam Barish of Mineola New York a stockbroker currently registered with Joseph Stone Capital LLC has been charged by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with taking part in an excessive trading scheme to defraud investors. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Ross Barish Case No. 1:20-cv-06437 (Aug. 13, 2020).
According to the Complaint, while Barish was associated with Joseph Stone Capital, sixteen of his customers were exposed to a costly in-and-out trading scheme between 2013 and July of 2019. This allegedly generated in excess of $400,000.00 in fees and commissions while leading those customers to collectively sustain $814,509.00 in losses.
Barish was required to have an adequate basis for believing that his recommendations were appropriate for customers. He allegedly violated his duty to those customers through recommending a frequent trading strategy. The Complaint alleges that the strategy produced ill-gotten gains for the stockbroker when he knew or ignored that his advice was unsuitable. SEC also indicated that customers were not suitable for the investment strategy given their circumstances, objectives and needs.
The Complaint indicates that important information had been either omitted or misrepresented from customers at the time of the recommended strategy being executed. Barish supposedly represented to customers that he had an adequate basis to recommend the investment strategy for their accounts. SEC contends that his recommendations constituted misrepresentations because he lacked a reasonable basis to believe that they were appropriate. The Commission also contends that his optimistic and upbeat statements to customers constituted misrepresentations since the costs pertaining to his strategy was nearly certain to erode their chances at profiting.
The Complaint additionally states that trades were executed in customer accounts by Barish without customers’ knowledge or consent.
SEC alleges that Barish’s actions were violative of Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Section 10(b), Rule 10b-5, and Securities Act of 1933 Section 17(a).
Barish has been identified in four additional customer initiated investment related disputes regarding accusations of his misconduct while he was employed by Joseph Stone Capital and Ladenburg Thalmann. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) Public Disclosure reveals that a customer filed an investment related complaint regarding Barish’s conduct where the customer requested $176,923.62 in damages supported by allegations that unauthorized trades were executed in the customer’s account and that Barish’s sales practices caused the customer to experience damages on stocks.
Another customer filed an investment related complaint involving Barish’s activities in which the customer sought $21,477.00 in damages founded on accusations of the stockbroker’s failure to abide by their instructions concerning over-the-counter equities effected in their Ladenburg Thalmann account. On March 30, 2017, an additional customer initiated investment related FINRA securities arbitration claim concerning Barish’s conduct was settled for $14,900.00 in damages based upon allegations that margin was excessively used and that the customer’s account was churned when Barish was associated with Joseph Stone Capital. FINRA Arbitration No. 17-00519. The claim also alleges that over-the-counter equities transactions were not suitable for the customer.
Barish is also the subject of a customer initiated investment related FINRA securities arbitration claim which was resolved for $14,900.00 in damages supported by accusations of breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty as it pertained to the stockbroker’s over-the-counter equities transactions in the customer’s Joseph Stone Capital account. FINRA Arbitration No. 17-01000 (June 14, 2017). According to the claim, the stockbroker made trades on an excessive and unsuitable basis.
Barish has been registered with Joseph Stone Capital since February 26, 2013.
