A registered investment adviser and broker Joseph Michaletz from Mankato, Minnesota, has been subject to multiple customer dispute disclosures instituted on the allegations of breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract among others, according to an investigation attorney Alan Rosca.
Investor rights lawyer Alan Rosca of the Rosca Scarlato LLC law firm and his colleagues are investigating conduct related to the multiple customer dispute disclosures involving broker Joseph Michaletz on the allegations breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract among others.
Joseph Gerard Michaletz is currently registered with DAI Securities, LLC, a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) member firm, since April 2018. He was formerly in the employment of Concorde Investment Services, LLC and Triad Advisors, Inc. between April 2006 and April 2018.
He was allegedly in the employment of these firms when he allegedly committed the acts leading to the pending customer disputes, FINRA reports.
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Joseph Michaletz Is the Subject of Multiple Customer Dispute Disclosures
According to publicly available information reviewed by investor lawyers, it was seen that Joseph Gerard Michaletz has been subject to several customer disputes.
The customer disputes were filed predominantly on the allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and breach of contract among others. Some of these allegations were made in relation to the sale of GPB investments according to the report on his FINRA Brokercheck page.
The latest customer dispute was filed with FINRA in December 2020. The customer alleges breach of fiduciary duty, unsuitable recommendations, fraudulent or negligent misrepresentations or omissions, and violation of FINRA rules. The employing firms when the alleged misconduct occurred were Concorde Investment Services and Triad Advisors, FINRA reports, and the customers asked for $457,000 in alleged damages.
In July 2020, another Michaletz customer filed a dispute with FINRA alleging breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and breach of contract. The employing firms were allegedly Concorde Investment Services and DAI Securities, and the alleged damages amount to $1,000,000, FINRA reports.
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In another customer dispute instituted in July 2020, the customer alleged breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, breach of contract, and failure to supervise. The Statement of Claim reportedly seeks unspecified damages, while the customer’s investments amount to $175,000.
In June 2020, a customer filed a dispute alleging breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, and breach of contract in connection to a $100,000 investment made in 2016. The employing firm when the alleged misconduct occurred was Concorde Investment Services, FINRA reports, and as of the date of this article this dispute is shown as pending.
Also in June 2020, a Joseph Michaletz customer alleged breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, failure to supervise and breach of contract related to a $100,000 investment in GPB Auto in April 2017. The alleged damages the client is seeking to recover amount to $73,000 and the dispute is still pending.
On 29th May, 2020, another client made the similar allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and breach of contract relating to investments made in July and October 2017 in a pending customer dispute. The damages are unspecified but believed to exceed $5,000.
Michaletz Customers Were Reportedly Paid Over $175k In Settlements
According to the publicly available FINRA records under the review by investor attorney Alan Rosca, between end of 2019 and July 2020 four customers settled disputes involving DAI Securities broker Joseph Michaletz.
In May, 2020 a customer filed a dispute on the allegation of the unsuitability of the alternative investments purchased on behalf of the client between 2012 and 2015. The customer requested unspecified damages, and in November 2020 this dispute was reportedly settled for $55,000, the Brokercheck reports.
Another client, in a customer dispute initiated in January, 2020, alleged the negligence and unsuitability of investment recommendations made between 2014 and 2018. According to FINRA, the Statement of Claim seeks unspecified compensatory damages and as of the date of this article the dispute shows as settled as to Triad Advisors for $23,5000 and pending with respect to Concorde Investment Services.
Another Joseph Gerard Michaletz client, in a dispute initiated in January, 2020 alleged the breach of fiduciary duty, and breach of contracts in relation to various GPB investments made between 2016 and 2018. The client is sought to recover $550,000 in damages and according to an October 2020 update the dispute reportedly settled for $22,000.
Finally, in a dispute initiated in November 2019, the client alleged the unsuitability of their investments. The client alleged that they invested $250,000 in GPB Holding I while the broker was at Triad and $650,000 when he was at Concorde. The customer sought unspecified damages and according to a November 2020 update the dispute settled for $75,000 as to Triad Advisors, and is currently reportedly pending with respect to Concorde Investment Services.
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GPB Ponzi Scheme and Class Action Lawsuit
As noted earlier, quite a number of the disputes originated from investments into GPB Holdings Investments. The investments were originated by GPB Capital Holdings, a company headquartered in New York City.
The GBP investments are allegedly a portfolio of alternative investments in cash and income generating businesses in various sectors. The portfolios include GPB Automotive Portfolio, GPB Cold Storage, LP, GPB Eurobond Finance PLC, GPB Holdings II, LP, GPB Waste Management, LP, and GPB NYC Developments among others.
The GPB Capital Holdings which has been allegedly described as a Ponzi scheme has raised over $1.8 billion in investments for its various portfolios. Brokers and broker dealers that sold these investments have allegedly received in excess of $165 million in commissions.
Investigation into the investments and/or brokerage firms that sold GPB to investors have been launched by various state and federal regulatory authorities including FINRA, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the State of Massachusetts Securities Division. The scrutiny into the company began in 2018 when the company announced that it will stop the sale of additional shares and it suspended the payment of dividends to address some accounting issues the firm had.
GPB Capital Holdings also announced the resignation of their auditor in November 2018. The resignation of the auditor was said to be due to risks that the auditor determined to be outside their scope, according to publicly available information reviewed. This subsequently led to the significant drop in the value of several GPB investments and in June 2019, GPB Capital Holdings also announced to their investors that the valuation of their investments have decreased by a further 25%.
Importantly, the Ponzi scheme lawyers of Rosca Scarlato LLC law firm currently represent investors in a class action lawsuit instituted against GPB Capital Holdings.
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In a recent update, on February 4, 2021, the SEC filed a complaint against GPB Capital Holdings, David Gentile, Jeffry Schneider, Jeffrey Lash and Ascendant Capital for allegations of fraud and Ponzi scheme. The complaint was filed simultaneously with an Indictment against David Gentile, Jeffry Schneider and Jeffrey Lash filed by the New York Attorney General for their role in the alleged Ponzi scheme.
On the same day, regulators in states of New York, New Jersey, Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri and South Carolina filed civil and administrative actions for similar allegations. For more information and latest updates investors concerned about their investments in GPB are encouraged to visit the GPB Capital Holdings investor center.
GPB investors are encouraged to reach out to experienced securities attorneys to discuss their options and to evaluate potential recovery claims. Investors may call attorney Alan Rosca at 888-998-0530, email arosca@rscounsel.law, or leave a message through the contact form on this page for a free, no obligation consultation with a GPB attorney.
Finally, it is important to note that, as of the date of this article, there has not been a finding of liability as to the complaints or allegations mentioned in this article, unless otherwise indicated. Any reader should also read the original sources hyperlinked in this blog for accuracy, including any BrokerCheck report and/or record of any disciplinary or regulatory action. Those sources are incorporated by reference into the text of this blog, and are the governing materials in case of any inconsistencies or typos in this blog.
Potential Options for Joseph Michaletz Investors
The Rosca Scarlato LLC law firm represents investors who lose money as a result of investment-related fraud or misconduct and is currently investigating conduct related to former broker Joseph Michaletz and the multiple customer dispute disclosures on the allegations of breach of contract and fiduciary duty among others and his participation in the GPB Capital Holdings Ponzi scheme.
The firm takes most cases of this type on a contingency fee basis and advances the case costs, and only gets paid for their fees and costs out of money recovered for clients. Attorney Alan Rosca, a securities lawyer and adjunct professor of securities regulation, has represented thousands of victimized investors across the country and around the world in cases ranging from arbitrations to class actions.
Investors who believe they lost money as a result of conducts related Joseph Gerard Michaletz multiple customer dispute disclosures on the allegations of breach of contract and fiduciary duty among others and his participation in the GPB Capital Holdings Ponzi scheme, may contact attorney Alan Rosca for a free no-obligation evaluation of their recovery options, at 888-998-0530, via email at arosca@rscounsel.law, or through the contact form on this webpage.
