Did Heather Cleary Fail to Act in Her Customer’s Best Interest?

Heather Cleary (CRD #: 5560835), a broker and investment advisor registered with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, was involved in an unsuitability dispute, according to her BrokerCheck record, accessed on April 12, 2022. 

According to the allegations filed on January 31, 2022, Heather Cleary recommended unsuitable investment recommendations and failed to act in her client’s best interests. The firm denied the dispute.

Firms can deny disputes without any external review. Denials simply mean the brokerage firm denies that their broker engaged in misconduct—they do not indicate a third-party review of the dispute.

FINRA Rule 2111

FINRA Rule 2111 requires investors to provide investment recommendations that are consistent with the customer’s investment profile. The customer’s investment profile includes the customer’s age, other investments, tax status, investment objectives, investment experience, investment time horizon, liquidity requirements, and risk tolerance.

Brokers may be liable for investor unsuitability claims if they fail to take the factors listed above into account. A broker must have exercised due diligence and have an adequate reason for believing that an investment will be suitable or beneficial for the investor.  

Make sure you are not being taken advantage of by contacting the securities attorneys at Kurta Law as soon as possible if you believe you lost funds due to unsuitable investment recommendations. 

Background Information

Heather Cleary has passed the following exams:

• Series 66 – Uniform Combined State Law Examination
• SIE – Securities Industry Essentials Examination
• Series 7 – General Securities Representative Examination

She is a registered broker in 21 states and a registered investment advisor in Texas and South Carolina.

Besides Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Heather Cleary has not worked with any other firm.

Kurta Law Can Help

If you have worked with Heather Cleary and have concerns about your investments, don’t hesitate to contact us today at 877-600-0098 or info@kurtalawfirm.com for a free consultation.

For nearly 20 years, Kurta Law has advocated for investors to recover their investment losses from brokers and brokerage firms. Kurta Law is a nationally recognized law firm and exclusively represents investors against brokers and brokerage firms on a contingency basis. This means that the firm only earns a fee if our securities attorneys recover money on your behalf.