FINRA Fines and Suspends Michael Tavel after Allegations of Selling Away

According to a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) on December 17, 2020, former LPL Financial Advisor Michael Tavel  of Indianapolis, IN was suspended for 18 months and fined $20,000 after allegations of selling away from this member firm. 

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s findings stated that Michael Tavel purportedly participated in private securities transactions away from his member firm without providing a written disclosure to the firm and he allegedly falsely attested to the firm that he had not solicited any unapproved private placements. 

According to FINRA, Tavel allegedly agreed to act as a placement agent for a private issuer purportedly in the business of making commercial loans. He then purportedly initiated the sale of a $25,000 note to a firm customer, an 82-year old with a conservative risk tolerance and an investment objective of growth with income.

Tavel reportedly received a $562.50 commission for the sale. The issuer and its chairman were then charged by the SEC with fraud and the customer reportedly lost his entire investment. 

Later, Tavel reportedly agreed to act as placement agent for an oil-extraction company. Based on Tavel’s recommendation and explanation of the venture, two of his other firm customers purportedly invested in private placements connected to the company. One invested $200,000 and the other $40,000. Tavel allegedly received a total of $19,700 in commissions for the transactions, according to FINRA. 

Further, FINRA also found that Tavel purportedly attempted to settle a customer’s complaint away from the firm, in violation of FINRA rules.  

According to his FINRA BrokerCheck report, Tavel was reportedly registered with LPL Financial in Indianapolis, IN from 2004 until he was allegedly discharged in March 2019  for participating “in private securities transaction(s) without prior notice to Firm. Attempted to settle a customer complaint without prior notice to, or approval from the Firm.”

Tavel reportedly has1 settled customer complaints from 2019 on his broker record.

Filing a Complaint against your Brokerage Firm

Brokerage firms are required to adequately supervise their advisors. They must ensure they are complying with FINRA rules.

When brokers abuse client accounts and conduct transactions that violate securities laws, the brokerage firm they are working with may be liable for investment losses. Brokerage firms that fail to monitor the business activities of their employees may be liable for investment losses due to negligent supervision for the misconduct of their employees.

The brokerage firms can be held responsible for any losses in a FINRA arbitration claim if it is determined that they failed to properly supervise their agent.

If you are concerned about investments with Michael Tavel and LPL Financial, the securities attorneys at The White Law Group may be able to help you. For a free consultation with an attorney, please call (888) 637-5510.

The foregoing information, which is all publicly available, is being provided by The White Law Group.

The White Law Group, LLC is a national securities fraud, securities arbitration, investor protection, and securities regulation/compliance law firm with offices in Chicago, Illinois. For more information, please visit our website, www.whitesecuritieslaw.com.