A FINRA arbitrator ordered former Raymond James broker John Charles Wyshak of the firm' Los Angeles, CA branch to pay the firm almost $1 million for breaching his agreement with the firm in regards to a customer complaint alleging churning and fraud, and to account for the firm's responsibility to make its clients whole for damages caused by Wyshak.
According to registered representative Raymond Wyshak (CRD #1272260)'s BrokerCheck file, a customer seeking over $1 million in damages for a plethora of misconduct including fraud, churning, concentration, omission of material facts, conversion, fraudulent concealment, failure to supervise, breach of contract, and breach of fiduciary duty, reached a $700,000 settlement with Raymond James over the misconduct of its broker Wyshak.
Through arbitration, Raymond James—who was responsible for its rep Wyshak's misconduct pursuant to California's state securities laws respondeat superior doctrine that says a firm is responsible for the actions of its agents or stockbrokers—sought to recoup compensatory damages from Wyshak based on allegations that he violated the "Raymond James Financial Advisor Instructions," which he previously signed.
The FINRA Office of Dispute Resolution sole arbitrator, Mark T. Risner, Esq., agreed, and ordered Wyshak to pay $932,471.05 in damages to Raymond James, after he allegedly "engaged in a churning scheme to defraud the [Clients]" from 2014 through 2017.
This isn't necessarily the end of the line, either, as Wyshak's file lists two other pending customer disputes filed in 2019, with allegations including unauthorized trading, suitability, excessive commissions, fraud, omission of material facts, conversion, fraudulent concealment, and violations of various industry standards and FINRA and NYSE rules.
In February 2019, we analyzed an arbitration panel's ruling that firm Quest Capital Strategies of Lake Forest, California was liable for the misconduct of broker Frank Roland Dietrich in selling $10.8 million of Woodbridge Group of Companies (a Ponzi scheme) promissory notes, even though Dietrich never disclosed the sales to Quest Capital and sold away from the firm, which may very well have not had any knowledge of the sales. Nonetheless, the arbitration panel ordered the firm to pay a harmed client, ruling that Quest Capital was liable for Dietrich's actions even though the firm itself didn't know about the violative sales.
Wyshak's most recent broker registrations include Wedbush Securities of Los Angeles (2002-2014) and Raymond James & Associates (2014-2018), also of Southern California. If you have invested with former Raymond James representative John Charles Wyshak or with any broker or financial adviser whose fraudulent conduct through churning, unauthorized trades, omissions of material facts, unsuitable recommendations, or similarly harmful misconduct has produced damages to your investments or financial interests, please call an experienced FINRA arbitration attorney at The Law Offices of Jonathan W. Evans & Associates at (800) 699-1881 for an investigation and consultation.