The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. has helped investors recover losses from broker securities fraud for over 45 years.
A nationwide law firm, they represent defrauded investors, stockbrokers, and financial advisors in securities fraud cases, FINRA arbitrations, and regulatory enforcement matters involving the SEC, CFTC, and FINRA.
Founded and led by Robert Wayne Pearce who has over 45 years of experience in investment fraud law, the securities law firm focuses primarily on helping investors recover losses from investment fraud while also defending financial professionals in regulatory actions and employment disputes within the securities industry.
The firm's attorneys handle complex investment disputes including private placement and Regulation D fraud, structured products litigation, and broker-dealer misconduct cases.
The investment and securities fraud lawyers at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce P.A., represents clients on all sides of securities, commodities and investment fraud and other issues in a broad range of practice areas in courtroom litigation, arbitration, SEC defense, and mediation proceedings.
Attorney Robert Wayne Pearce and his team have handled hundreds of FINRA, AAA and JAMs securities arbitration and mediation cases for satisfied clients located in many U.S. states and throughout the world.
Our investment and securities fraud lawyers have represented investors throughout the United States and internationally. We have recovered over $185 million for our investor clients in all types of stockbroker fraud and broker and advisor misconduct cases.
At The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., we believe the ultimate barometer of our success is surpassing the expectation of our clients.
The following clients have direct knowledge of our law firm's processes from the inside and experienced our securities fraud attorneys' fierce advocacy.
The page explains that non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs) were widely promoted but often involved misrepresentations about returns, liquidity, and risks. At our firm, we’ve seen investors misled by sales solicitations lacking transparency, resulting in unsuitable, complex investment losses. Understanding these risks is essential before investing in any illiquid REIT offering.
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FINRA arbitration can help investors recover losses, but results depend on preparation and strategy. Our attorneys conduct a detailed case review, draft a fact-rich Statement of Claim, and manage arbitrator selection, discovery, mediation, and hearing presentation. We focus on evidence, deadlines, and damages analysis so clients know what to expect from start to award today.
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If you invested in an Inspired Healthcare Capital DST, income fund, or private placement and lost money, you are not alone. Thousands of investors are now facing suspended distributions, frozen capital, and the very real possibility of total loss after Inspired Healthcare Capital (IHC)’s downfall and subsequent Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing on February 2, 2026.
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Investment Fraud Lawyer | Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A | Securities Law Firm
With a Successful Track Record for Recovery of Investment Losses
Attorney Robert Wayne Pearce is a well-respected advocate for investors throughout the legal community, known as a fierce litigator and tireless not only in Florida but across the nation and near you.
Read his Investors’ Rights Blog and discover the breadth of his knowledge that can only be gained from over 45 years of legal experience for yourself. As one of the most experienced in FINRA arbitration, Mr. Pearce knows all of the available options for your case and will pursue them vigorously to secure the best possible outcome for you and your stockbroker fraud and stockbroker misconduct case.
He has earned a peer rating of AV Preeminent * through the Martindale-Hubbell peer review rating process, the highest available rating through that program.
Mr. Pearce is one of Thomson Reuters Florida Super Lawyers ** for Securities Litigation (Top 5). Read the feature article about him in the Florida 2014 Super Lawyers magazine entitled: “No Excuses – How Robert Wayne Pearce Stared Down Personal Disaster”.
During his more than 45 years of experience practicing securities and commodities law, he has won numerous million-dollar awards and settlements for his clients which has earned him recognition for his success by The Million Dollar Advocates Forum and The Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum as one of the Top Trial Lawyers in America TM***.
By hiring The Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., you get access to his over 45 years of experience practicing in the area of securities, commodities and investment fraud on both sides of the table in arbitrations and courtroom litigation, and you will clearly see his legal experience and knowledge in action. Having a fierce litigator and tireless advocate of your rights, and one who will quickly identify both the strengths and the weaknesses of your case will surely increase the likelihood of winning your case.
A stockbroker is a licensed financial professional or brokerage firm that facilitates the buying and selling of securities on behalf of investors. Stockbrokers connect individuals and institutions to financial markets, allowing them to trade stocks, bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and other investment products. Depending on the services they offer, stockbrokers may also provide investment recommendations, market research, and assistance with managing brokerage accounts. Stockbrokers are different from financial advisors and investment advisers, although their services sometimes overlap. While stockbrokers primarily facilitate securities transactions, investment advisers generally provide ongoing investment advice or portfolio management services. Because stockbrokers handle investors’ money and securities transactions, they must follow strict financial regulations designed to protect their customers. In this guide, our team at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. explains what stockbrokers do, the different types of brokers, how they earn money, and the legal responsibilities they owe investors. We’ll also explain how to evaluate a stockbroker and recognize potential signs of fraud or misconduct. What Does a Stockbroker Do? A stockbroker executes securities transactions for investors, provides access to financial markets, and may offer investment guidance and brokerage account services. Their primary responsibility is to facilitate the buying and selling of securities through a registered brokerage firm. Stockbrokers perform several important functions: For example, an investor who wants to purchase $10,000 worth of a particular stock can place an order through a brokerage account. The brokerage firm then routes the order for execution according to its trading procedures. Some investors work directly with individual brokers, while others use online brokerage platforms to place transactions themselves (often without speaking to a broker at all). The level of assistance you receive depends largely on the type of brokerage service you choose. What Are the Different Types of Stockbrokers? Stockbrokers generally operate through full-service or discount brokerage models, with different levels of personal assistance, investment advice, and fees. Online brokerage platforms also allow investors to manage their investments with relatively little direct involvement from a financial professional. The three common brokerage service models include: Consider an investor approaching retirement who wants personalized assistance with investment decisions. A full-service brokerage might be suitable, while another investor who already understands the stock market might prefer a discount brokerage with lower trading costs. Online trading platforms are generally a form of discount brokerage rather than a separate regulatory category. Since brokerage services and pricing can differ considerably, you should understand how your broker earns money before opening an account. How Do Stockbrokers Make Money? Stockbrokers and brokerage firms earn money through trading commissions, account fees, investment-related compensation, and other brokerage services. Their compensation depends on the brokerage’s business model, the products offered, and the services provided. Common sources of brokerage revenue include: Many online brokerages now offer commission-free trading for eligible stocks and ETFs. However, investors may still incur other costs (including regulatory fees, investment product expenses, and transaction-related charges). Another consideration is how a broker’s compensation might influence their investment recommendations. Pro Tip: Review your broker’s compensation arrangements before accepting an investment recommendation. A broker who receives higher compensation for selling one product may have a financial incentive to recommend it over a less expensive alternative. These potential conflicts are one reason investors should examine brokerage fees and compensation disclosures carefully. Stockbroker vs. Financial Advisor: What’s the Difference? Stockbrokers primarily facilitate securities transactions, while financial advisors may provide broader financial planning and investment management services. The main differences involve the services they provide, how they receive compensation, and the legal standards that apply to their work. Stockbrokers typically work through registered broker-dealers and assist customers with buying and selling securities. They may also recommend investment products or strategies as part of their brokerage services. Financial advisors, meanwhile, may offer retirement planning, portfolio management, tax-related planning, and broader financial guidance. However, the term financial advisor is broad and can describe professionals with different registrations and responsibilities. Compensation arrangements can also differ. For example, a registered investment adviser may charge an ongoing fee based on the assets it manages, while a stockbroker may receive transaction-based compensation. Both brokerage and advisory relationships can involve other fee arrangements. Some financial professionals are also dually registered, meaning they can provide both brokerage and investment advisory services (sometimes to the same customer). In these situations, their legal obligations depend on which capacity they are acting in when providing a particular service or recommendation. This distinction matters because licensing requirements and investor protections also vary according to the services provided. What Qualifications and Licenses Do Stockbrokers Need? U.S. stockbrokers generally must register through an authorized brokerage firm and meet applicable securities examination and registration requirements. These requirements help establish that brokers understand securities products, industry regulations, and their professional responsibilities. Stockbrokers are subject to oversight by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and applicable state securities regulators. Two important qualification examinations include: Depending on their activities, brokers may also need to pass a state law examination, such as the Series 63, or obtain other registrations. Many stockbrokers have degrees in finance, economics, or business, although a college degree is generally not a regulatory requirement. After completing their registration, brokers must continue complying with the securities laws and professional standards that govern their dealings with investors. What Are a Stockbroker’s Legal Responsibilities to Investors? Stockbrokers must comply with securities laws and applicable FINRA rules, including requirements governing investment recommendations, disclosures, conflicts of interest, and customer account activity. These obligations are designed to protect investors against abusive practices and inappropriate financial recommendations. Some of the most important responsibilities include: Violating these obligations can carry serious legal consequences. Depending on the circumstances, brokers and brokerage firms may face regulatory sanctions, financial penalties, or investor claims for damages. Of course, even with these protections in place, investors should investigate a broker’s professional background before trusting them with their money. How Do You Choose a Trustworthy Stockbroker? Investors should verify a stockbroker’s registration, investigate their disciplinary history, compare costs, and understand the...
Learn MoreThe main difference between a broker-dealer and an investment advisor is that broker-dealers primarily buy and sell securities for customers, while investment advisors provide investment advice and often manage investment portfolios. Both can recommend stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other investments. However, they differ in the services they provide, how they receive compensation, and the legal obligations they owe investors. And these differences matter when you’re deciding who should handle your investments. In this guide, we’ll compare their responsibilities, fees, regulatory requirements, and qualifications. We’ll also explain how to check a financial professional’s background and protect yourself from potential investment misconduct. Broker-Dealer vs. Investment Advisor: Key Differences at a Glance Broker-dealers primarily facilitate securities transactions, while investment advisors typically provide ongoing investment advice and portfolio management. Although their services can overlap, their business models and legal responsibilities differ in several important ways. Feature Broker-Dealer Investment Advisor Primary role Securities trading and brokerage services Investment advice and portfolio management Compensation Commissions, spreads, and other fees Asset-based, flat, or hourly fees Legal obligations Regulation Best Interest for covered retail recommendations Fiduciary duty of care and loyalty Trading authority Generally client-directed, unless otherwise authorized May have discretionary trading authority Regulation SEC, FINRA, and state regulators SEC or state securities regulators Typical services Trade execution and investment recommendations Financial planning, advice, and portfolio oversight One important distinction concerns legal responsibilities. Both types of financial professionals have best-interest obligations in relevant circumstances, but those obligations apply differently depending on the services provided. What Is a Broker-Dealer? A broker-dealer is a person or financial firm that buys and sells securities on behalf of customers, for its own account, or both. Broker-dealers connect investors with financial markets and facilitate transactions involving stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and other securities. The term combines two separate functions: For example, suppose you want to purchase 100 shares of Microsoft. You could place an order through your brokerage account, and the broker-dealer would arrange the transaction on your behalf. Broker-dealers also provide other services, including investment recommendations, market research, and access to investment products. Some firms offer personalized assistance through registered representatives, while others operate online platforms where investors make their own trading decisions. What Is an Investment Advisor? An investment advisor, legally referred to as an investment adviser, is a person or firm that provides securities-related investment advice for compensation. Investment advisers help clients develop investment strategies, manage portfolios, and make financial decisions based on their individual circumstances. Firms registered to provide these services are called registered investment advisers (RIAs). The individuals who provide advice on their behalf may be known as investment adviser representatives (IARs). Their services commonly include retirement planning, asset allocation, investment recommendations, and portfolio management. For example, suppose you have $500,000 saved for retirement. You might hire an investment adviser to develop an investment strategy based on your age, financial objectives, and tolerance for risk. Depending on your agreement, the adviser could also monitor your portfolio and adjust investments as your circumstances change. Investment advisers generally owe fiduciary duties of care and loyalty to their clients throughout the scope of their advisory relationships. What’s the Difference Between a Broker-Dealer and an Investment Advisor? The main differences between broker-dealers and investment advisors involve their services, legal responsibilities, compensation structures, and authority to manage investments. Broker-dealers generally focus on securities transactions, while investment advisers often maintain ongoing relationships with clients and oversee their investment portfolios. However, some firms and financial professionals operate in both capacities. And in those cases, the legal obligations depend on which services they provide and the capacity in which they act. 1. Services and What They’re Allowed to Do Broker-dealers execute securities transactions, maintain brokerage accounts, and provide access to investment products. Many also offer investment recommendations based on a customer’s financial circumstances and objectives. Investment advisers typically provide ongoing services, including financial planning, asset allocation, and portfolio management. Another important difference involves discretionary trading authority, which allows a financial professional to make certain investment decisions without obtaining approval for every transaction. Investment advisers frequently receive this authority through client agreements. Broker-dealers can also exercise discretion when properly authorized and subject to applicable regulations. And some firms offer both brokerage and investment advisory services. These businesses are known as dual registrants, and their obligations depend on the particular services they provide. 2. Fiduciary Duties and Standards of Conduct Broker-dealers and investment advisers are subject to different legal standards, although both have obligations to act in investors’ best interests in relevant circumstances. Broker-dealers must comply with Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) when making covered recommendations to retail customers. This means they must act in the customer’s best interest without placing their own financial interests ahead of the customer’s interests. Investment advisers owe fiduciary duties of care and loyalty to their clients. These duties require advisers to provide advice in their clients’ best interests and appropriately address conflicts of interest. The main distinction concerns when these obligations apply. For example, a broker-dealer’s Regulation Best Interest obligations generally arise when making covered recommendations. An investment adviser’s fiduciary duties extend throughout the scope of the advisory relationship. Both professionals must also address conflicts that could influence their recommendations, including financial incentives associated with particular investments. 3. Fees and Compensation Broker-dealers commonly earn money through commissions, transaction fees, markups, markdowns, and other brokerage-related charges. Investment advisers typically charge fees based on assets under management (AUM), although some charge hourly rates or fixed fees. For example, an investment adviser charging 1% annually on a $500,000 portfolio would collect $5,000 per year, assuming the portfolio’s value remained unchanged. Both arrangements can create conflicts of interest. Transaction-based compensation may encourage excessive trading, while asset-based fees can influence recommendations involving account balances and investments. And because compensation structures sometimes overlap, investors should review all applicable charges, including account fees and underlying investment expenses. 4. Investment Management and Client Relationships Broker-dealers generally provide transaction-focused services, although some offer ongoing recommendations and account monitoring. Investment advisers commonly maintain longer-term relationships involving portfolio oversight, investment planning, and...
Learn MoreThe risks of structured products are issuer credit risk, illiquidity, pricing you cannot verify, capped or conditional returns, embedded costs, missed dividends, and the potential loss of principal if a barrier is breached. A structured product combines debt with a derivative, which means your outcome can depend on the performance of the underlying asset, the issuer’s ability to pay, and the specific terms of the note. FINRA announced a review of higher-risk structured products in May 2026 after identifying instances where firms and their representatives concentrated customer accounts in these products. If a broker sold you a structured note as a safe, income-producing substitute for bonds and you are now looking at a loss, the recommendation may deserve closer scrutiny. You may be entitled to recover that money. The investment fraud team at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A. has spent 45 years representing investors in exactly these disputes, and the consultation is free. In this guide, we are going to walk you through what these products are and how the payoff is built, the risks one at a time, who they actually fit, FINRA’s current scrutiny of worst-of notes, and the questions to ask before signing. What Is a Structured Product? A structured product is a debt security issued by a bank and packaged with derivatives, so your return depends on the performance of an underlying asset instead of a fixed rate of interest. Issuers, including investment banks, build these products by combining a bond component with options on an index, a single stock, a commodity, or a currency. FINRA describes structured products as securities derived from or based on a single security, a basket of securities, an index, a commodity, a debt issuance and/or a foreign currency. They are sold as notes, certificates of deposit, or other market-linked investments, and the label on the term sheet rarely tells you how the payoff works. Our page on what structured notes are takes the definition apart in more detail. How Structured Products Work Structured products work by splitting your money in two: a bond component that funds repayment of principal at maturity, and a derivative component that produces whatever return you are credited. Terms set at issuance fix the cap, the participation rate, the observation dates, and the level at which protection stops. The type of protection built into the note determines the level of capital protection and when you can start taking losses. A buffer absorbs losses up to a stated percentage, while a barrier provides protection only if the underlying asset stays above a specified level. If the barrier level is breached, the investor may become exposed to principal loss, depending on the product’s terms. These terms are set when the note is issued, so understanding how the payoff works before you invest matters. We set them out step by step on our structured notes page. The Different Types of Structured Products Structured products fall into a few families: principal protected notes, buffers and barrier notes, autocallable notes, and yield enhancement products such as reverse convertibles. Family names signal where the risk actually sits inside the payoff formula. Worst-of notes track several reference assets and pay only on the weakest one, which is the design FINRA singled out for review in May 2026. A strong year in three of the four assets does not save the payoff if the fourth one falls through its barrier. The full breakdown by underlying asset and payoff type sits on our structured notes page. Risks to Consider When Investing in Structured Notes/Products As an investor, you must be fully aware of the associated risks and whether structured notes fit within your investment parameters. Robert Pearce, Attorney at the Law Offices of Robert Wayne Pearce, P.A., will explain these risks to you. He is a highly experienced investment fraud lawyer who has successfully handled many structured note cases and other complex securities and investment law matters. Features of a particular structured product, dependent upon the type of products issued, that you as an investor should consider when determining its general suitability: Credit Issues Structured products are unsecured debt obligations of the issuer. As a result, they are subject to the risk of default by the issuer. This creates counterparty risk, because investors depend on the issuer to meet its obligations. The creditworthiness of the issuer will affect its ability to pay interest and repay principal. The financial condition and credit rating of the issuer are, therefore, important considerations. The credit rating, if any, pertains to the issuer and is not indicative of the market risk of the structured product or underlying asset. If a structured issue provides principal protection or a minimum return, any such guarantee rests on the credit quality of the issuer. Those issued by banks in the form of CDs may also provide FDIC insurance with standard coverage limitations. Liquidity Structured products are generally not listed on an exchange or may be thinly traded. As a result, there may be a limited secondary market for these products, making it difficult for investors to sell them prior to maturity. Investors who need to sell structured products prior to maturity are likely to receive less than the amount they invested. Therefore, structured products with longer maturities are subject to greater liquidity risk. The price that someone is willing to pay for structured products in a secondary sale will be influenced by market forces and other factors that are hard to predict. Sometimes, a broker-dealer affiliate of the issuer may make a market for the resale of structured products prior to maturity, but the price it is willing to pay will be adversely affected by the commissions paid by the issuer on the initial sale of the structured products and the issuer’s hedging costs. Pricing Risks Structured products can be difficult to price because their valuation is tied to an underlying asset or basket of assets, and there typically is no established trading market for structured products from which to determine...
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