TAMPA, Fla., Feb. 20, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- If you or someone you love lost money while working with former Commonwealth Capital broker Kimberly Springsteen-Abbott, please contact our investor fraud lawyers at Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas (SSEK Law Firm) so we can determine whether you have grounds for a claim. In 2013, Springsteen-Abbott was accused by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) of misusing about $345K of investor funds to pay for her own expenses, including home renovations, meals, travel, and other items. Also that year, she arrived at $1.5M settlement with the SEC after she allegedly misled private placement investors of the Commonwealth Income & Growth Fund Inc. about compensation practices. In 2015, FINRA barred her.
Springsteen-Abbott had appealed the industry bar with FINRA’s own National Adjudication Council (NAC), but the council affirmed the ruling. She then appealed to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which earlier this month found that the ban was warranted.
Springsteen-Abbott Accused of “Egregious” Misconduct
The Commission, like FINRA, determined that there were “aggravating factors” that made the former Commonwealth Capital broker’s misconduct “egregious” and she had “unjustifiably enriched herself” when she “misallocated” the money of various private placement funds, hurting investors in the process. The SEC said that after FINRA began its probe into Springsteen-Abbott’s alleged activities, she kept hiding her misconduct via false information that she disseminated in order to make her expenses seem justified.
Between 1993 and now, Commonwealth Capital has put together investments in equipment leases into private placement funds that were sold through independent brokerage firms, raising more than $240M. According to Commonwealth Capital Corp.’s website, Springsteen-Abbott is still the firm’s CEO and chairwoman. Her husband Henry Abbott, however, has taken over her previous role as head of brokerage firm Commonwealth Capital Securities Corp.
Broker Fraud Lawyers
Brokerage firms can be held liable when their brokers or firm principals engage in negligent and fraudulent action. An investor fraud claim is not the type of case that you want to pursue without experienced legal help. Please contact SSEK Law Firm today if you suffered losses while working with Kimberly Springsteen-Abbott or another Commonwealth Capital broker.
Contact Info – (800) 259-9010
Sam Edwards: sedwards@sseklaw.com
Kirk Smith: ksmith@sseklaw.com