Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas LLP Investigating Claims Involving Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC's Sale Of UITs

HOUSTON, Sept. 26, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Lawyers with the Securities Law Firm of SHEPHERD SMITH EDWARDS & KANTAS LLP, www.sseklaw.com ("SSEK") are investigating claims involving the improper sale of Unit Investment Trusts ("UITs") by registered representatives of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, LLC.  UITs are investment companies similar to mutual funds and exchange-traded funds.  A key difference with UITs is that they expire after a pre-set amount of time, usually two years or less.  They also generally have a contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC"), which is a fee an investor is charged if he or she liquidates the investment early.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") recently ordered Morgan Stanley Smith Barney to pay almost $10M in restitution along with another $3.25M fine for its alleged failure to properly supervise some of its registered representatives recommended their clients cash out their UITs early to move into another investment, including other UITs.  By doing these short trades, the brokers increased their own income at the expense of their clients.  According to FINRA's investigation, Morgan Stanley failed to put in place an adequate supervisory system to detect and prevent these problems.

If you are or were a client of Morgan Stanley, or any other investment company that recommended you cash out a UIT investment early, please contact the law firm of Shepherd, Smith, Edwards & Kantas LLP.  All communications will be kept strictly confidential, and you will not be billed in any way for this communication.

Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas LLP has a team of attorneys, consultants and staff with more than 100 years of combined experience in the securities industry and in securities law. For more than two decades, our firm has represented thousands of investors nationwide to recover losses. We have represented clients in federal and state courts, as well as arbitration through the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the New York Stock Exchange Inc. (NYSE), the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and in private arbitration actions.

Contact Info:  800-259-9010

Sam Edwards [email protected]

Kirk Smith [email protected]

SOURCE Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas LLP