If you suspect that your broker has been misusing your money, you may have decided to schedule a consultation with a securities law attorney to see if you have a fraud claim. During this first meeting, you may want to take the following three items with you to give the lawyer an overall view of the situation.
The first items you will want to make sure you have are copies of any securities and stock certificates given to you by your broker. Also, if they provided you with a portfolio, bring that along as well. If the broker prefers to list any transactions online, make sure you print out a hard copy to give to the attorney.
With the certificates and portfolio in their hands, the lawyer can then look at the language used and any fine print that you may have missed or did not understand. This gives the attorney an idea whether the broker was working within the contract represented by the certificates.
Another thing you want to bring with you is all correspondence received by your broker. These may include letters, transaction updates, and stock statements.
When the lawyer looks at these, they can compare all of the documentation to make sure they match up with your portfolio and certificates. They can also look to see if anything is listed or discussed that seems suspicious, such as a company listed on the transaction update that does not match any stocks you knowingly purchased.
Along with comparing correspondence and certificates, the lawyer may also need to see any of your personal financial statements or check copies of money paid to the broker. This is especially important if the broker automatically deducts money from your accounts.
If the money amounts do not quite add up with what your portfolio represents, the lawyer may decide you have a case for fraud. Having all of these documents can give him a clearer picture of what your broker has been doing with your money.
Taking the above documents with you to your consultation can give the lawyer an idea of what is happening between you and your securities broker. If you have any further questions about what your securities law attorney will require, call the office before your consultation so you can be fully prepared to present the evidence to see if the lawyer feels you have a case.