Attorneys in Niles Barton’s Securities and Compliance Practice leverage the experience of having worked as in-house counsel for regulators such as FINRA, certification organizations such as CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER BOARD OF STANDARDS (CFP Board), as well as several public financial services companies. Our clients include companies and individuals who work in the financial services industries, including broker-dealers, investment advisors, and insurance agencies. We advise clients on matters relating to regulatory compliance, merger and acquisition opportunities, and employment issues. We vigorously defend our clients who are the subject of a government investigation, or federal or state securities enforcement action.
We add value to our clients by drafting policies and procedures to not just comply with the regulatory requirements that impact their business, we also identify practices to avoid where possible or mitigate liability. Our team is experienced in drafting, reviewing, and filing disclosure documents such as Form ADV and Form U-4, as well as in keeping our clients apprised of changes in regulations of the SEC, FINRA, other self-regulatory regulatory organizations, state securities and insurance regulators, and certification organizations.
For our well-established company clients, we advise company management and boards of directors on opportunities to purchase the book of business of retiring advisors. For individuals interested in starting their own advisory firm, we advise on choice of business entity, organizational structure, governance, and protection of intellectual property.
Our team of litigators develop strategies for dispute resolution, which often include claims of breach of contract, defamation, and torts such as a competitor’s tortious interference with our clients’ contractual relationships. We have successfully expunged customer complaints from our broker and advisor clients’ public disclosure records.
We represent clients in securities enforcement investigations initiated by the SEC, FINRA, state securities regulators, and certification organizations such as CFP Board, as well as matters originating with the IRS, the Maryland Insurance Administration, the Maryland Real Estate Commission, and other state and federal agencies. With each client, our objective is to guide the client to the best possible outcome.
