If nothing else works you might want to try a radical form of public protest. For example do up a very large sign with his name on it....I mean 8 foot by 30...a very large banner. Then some smaller signs with his company, home address, mother's address, etc. Get some friends or hire a few unemployed actors to dress up as ISIS Islamic militants and do mock beheadings with fake blood. This will draw a crowd, the police and the TV news crews in short order and with the proper staging will make the network news and CNN. Get friends to put on Youtube live.
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Need help - lost big money to prop. firm scam.
- Thread starter va01us
- Start date
If this was really filed and is public please post a link to it. This is like the third thread recently where someone says they are getting ripped off by a prop firm but refuse to give the name. Smells fishy. You are posting using an anonymous screen name....where is the downside? You come here asking for help but we should refuse to help you if you can't tell us the name of the firm. At least that will help us determine if it's a firm we want to do business with. It might also force them to cooperate with you if they think their reputation is being tarnished. Name the firm or stop your BS.
Thank you. More details. Court case is filed . It is public. Somehow, they are not afraid. They even manage to keep a lot of partners, investors, etc. I have unconfirmed information that they have interest in another prop. firm . Many officers of this prop. firm moved to another firm somehow. And , when they stopped returning money , they claimed for some time that they are merging with that firm. SEC is notified. But, even if they find anything criminal - they are 100% silent on the topic - no answers - see public announcements only. So, I don't know if they found wrongdoing or not. And it can take them years - I was told by others. I filed complaint with FBI - it is probably similar to SEC, but , anyhow, I did not get a word from them. I don't see any route - other than court (but I will welcome any ideas, and will try anything). But, going through court - I need to serve them papers - otherwise - court will throw case out.
As for calling FBI- I will try. But, I am afraid they will not comment - like SEC. From my point of view - it is SEC and FBI level case - big amounts of money. It is close to $1,000,000. At least, people I know lost close to $750,000. If anybody has idea - how to contact DA office or, even file Police complaint - let me know. As I said - from their perspective - it is Civil court case.
I can't speak for va01us, but I suppose the downside might be that you could be sued for libel if you name names in a public forum without having your allegations substantiated by a legal judgement or regulatory action. The mere fact that you've filed a lawsuit or complaint doesn't grant you immunity from being held responsible for libel or slander. The scam artist whom I referred to in a prior post (by initials only) threatened to do that to me, and the amount of time, energy and money it would take to fight something like that wouldn't been worth it in my case... let alone considering the possibility that you could even lose, and be held liable for damages.If this was really filed and is public please post a link to it. This is like the third thread recently where someone says they are getting ripped off by a prop firm but refuse to give the name. Smells fishy. You are posting using an anonymous screen name....where is the downside? You come here asking for help but we should refuse to help you if you can't tell us the name of the firm. At least that will help us determine if it's a firm we want to do business with. It might also force them to cooperate with you if they think their reputation is being tarnished. Name the firm or stop your BS.
You could be right... but on the flip side, what would va01us' motivations be if this is all BS? To besmirch all prop firms in general?? Seems like an awful lot of effort for something that would likely have minimal direct benefit to any given individual or even organization. That he/she is seeking advice on how to deal with a bad situation, rather than focusing on using the post to publicly tarnish a specific individual's/firm's reputation, actually makes it seem more credible to me.
I can't speak for va01us, but I suppose the downside might be that you could be sued for libel if you name names in a public forum without having your allegations substantiated by a legal judgement or regulatory action. The mere fact that you've filed a lawsuit or complaint doesn't grant you immunity from being held responsible for libel or slander. The scam artist whom I referred to in a prior post (by initials only) threatened to do that to me, and the amount of time, energy and money it would take to fight something like that wouldn't been worth it in my case... let alone considering the possibility that you could even lose, and be held liable for damages.
You could be right... but on the flip side, what would va01us' motivations be if this is all BS? To besmirch all prop firms in general?? Seems like an awful lot of effort for something that would likely have minimal direct benefit to any given individual or even organization. That he/she is seeking advice on how to deal with a bad situation, rather than focusing on using the post to publicly tarnish a specific individual's/firm's reputation, actually makes it seem more credible to me.
What kind of bunk is this? The statement "I have filed a law suit" is a statement of fact....like "I am buyng a toaster at Wal-Mart today at 3:15 PM".
Yep, I agree that you can make a statement of fact -- i.e., that you filed a lawsuit against a particular individual or entity (by name) for allegedly doing something. All I'm saying is that va01us may want to be careful with what he/she says and how he/she says it until the allegations are actually substantiated either in court, or via some regulatory action.What kind of bunk is this? The statement "I have filed a law suit" is a statement of fact....like "I am buyng a toaster at Wal-Mart today at 3:15 PM".
Until that point -- anyone can *file* a lawsuit, just like anyone can *file* a complaint. That doesn't make the allegations valid... nor does it grant them automatic immunity from being found guilty of libel, slander or defamation of character for anything they may say or write publicly after that. (And granted -- nor does that mean that the other party will win even if they did sue for libel.) But IMO, in the legal system, you can be "right" and still lose. The only real winners are usually the attorneys.
So even though naming the alleged con artist might benefit the trading community, it might not necessarily be in va01us' own best interests. I wouldn't be surprised if his/her legal counsel would recommend letting the case be played out in court -- where it really matters -- vs. public forums, where the (personal) benefits are arguably marginal and they are just increasing their own exposure to potential counter-action.
Until that point -- anyone can *file* a lawsuit, just like anyone can *file* a complaint. That doesn't make the allegations valid... nor does it grant them automatic immunity from being found guilty of libel, slander or defamation of character for anything they may say or write publicly after that. (And granted -- nor does that mean that the other party will win even if they did sue for libel.) But IMO, in the legal system, you can be "right" and still lose. The only real winners are usually the attorneys.
If a lawsuit was filed in civil court and the judge did not seal it, then it's a matter of public record. The filer of the lawsuit does not have to post his public opinion of the matter regarding the allegations or the character(s) of the defendant(s). The court will decide the case on the merits, all he has to do is provide the case # and jurisdiction.
When the SEC files a public notice complaint against a broker/dealer or individual for securities violations on SEC.gov, then by your logic the b/d or individual can sue them for libel/slander just by the mere citing or sharing of that public document? Nonsense.
If a lawsuit was filed in civil court and the judge did not seal it, then it's a matter of public record. The filer of the lawsuit does not have to post his public opinion of the matter regarding the allegations or the character(s) of the defendant(s). The court will decide the case on the merits, all he has to do is provide the case # and jurisdiction.
When the SEC files a public notice complaint against a broker/dealer or individual for securities violations on SEC.gov, then by your logic the b/d or individual can sue them for libel/slander just by the mere citing or sharing of that public document? Nonsense.
You are correct. The original comment on this is nonsense. The US is not North Korea. One can announce that today I filed a lawsuit against XYZ or today I ate an ABC pizza. You don't need permission from DEF Pizza company to announce you are eating the competition which might imply something not good about DEF pizzas
USA. New York. Case is filed in another state where I resides and where they are registered. But I need to serve court documents. I need servers to get in from of this person and that's all. If he refuses at that point - it does not matter - they can put documents on the floor. But, they need to find him
Your posts are a bit confusing. Is it a prop firm or a hedge fund? If it's a prop firm that is a registered b/d, then you can file a complaint with SEC and FINRA, and/or the SRO of the firm.
Did you put up a deposit, or did you invest as a partner in the LLC or LP? What is the structure of the firm? Usually, hedge funds operate as LP's, but if you're an investor, you are part of a separate legal entity, usually through an LLC with other investors.
I'm sure the agreement you signed has some clauses regarding disputes, perhaps it's arbitration? Please clarify your actual position with the firm and the structure(s) of the legal entities.
Your best route is probably to go through an attorney who specializes in hedge funds.
Good luck.
I did *not* say that you need permission. What I said was:You are correct. The original comment on this is nonsense. The US is not North Korea. One can announce that today I filed a lawsuit against XYZ or today I ate an ABC pizza. You don't need permission from DEF Pizza company to announce you are eating the competition which might imply something not good about DEF pizzas
"Yep, I agree that you can make a statement of fact -- i.e., that you filed a lawsuit against a particular individual or entity (by name) for allegedly doing something. All I'm saying is that va01us may want to be careful with what he/she says and how he/she says it until the allegations are actually substantiated either in court, or via some regulatory action."
"Nonsense" is your post suggesting that the guy get actors or friends to dress up as ISIS militants performing mock beheadings with fake blood to draw attention to this situation. In fact, it's worse than nonsense...
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Re-read what I said -- in particular, the 2nd sentence (below):If a lawsuit was filed in civil court and the judge did not seal it, then it's a matter of public record. The filer of the lawsuit does not have to post his public opinion of the matter regarding the allegations or the character(s) of the defendant(s). The court will decide the case on the merits, all he has to do is provide the case # and jurisdiction.
When the SEC files a public notice complaint against a broker/dealer or individual for securities violations on SEC.gov, then by your logic the b/d or individual can sue them for libel/slander just by the mere citing or sharing of that public document? Nonsense.
"Yep, I agree that you can make a statement of fact -- i.e., that you filed a lawsuit against a particular individual or entity (by name) for allegedly doing something. All I'm saying is that va01us may want to be careful with what he/she says and how he/she says it until the allegations are actually substantiated either in court, or via some regulatory action."
It doesn't contradict anything you stated in your first paragraph. We're in agreement there.
As far as the second part of your post: No, that is not "my" logic. What I'm suggesting is that va01us simply be careful as to what he/she says beyond those statements of fact, and how he/she presents them. I am *not* saying that he/she can't state something that is a fact, and a matter of public record.
An individual can *file* a lawsuit against you for just about anything, and it will then be up to the courts to decide. That's not to say that they will *win* the lawsuit -- just that they can *file* a suit. If they do, and the suit is not blatantly frivolous, then you'll be forced to defend yourself in court. In the end, you may prevail -- even to the point of not only having your costs paid for the plaintiff, but possibly their being fined by the court as well. You could even counter-sue and win.
But all of that involves a lot of hassles -- time, expense -- on your part... which is exactly why people accused of fraud (rightfully or wrongfully) may not only threaten to sue you for something like libel/slander/defamation of character... but may even follow through with it. A lot depends on what resources they have at their disposal -- $$, time, legal counsel -- versus what they think you have. As I noted in another post, that is exactly what happened to me when I got scammed by a prop firm. And I hate to admit it, but that threat did make me think -- because the last thing I need to go thru the hassles of defending myself against a lawsuit (in another state, no less), regardless of what my odds of prevailing are. It would be naive to think that even crooks can't/don't manipulate the legal system to their benefit.
None of us has anything tangible at stake except va01us... so my suggestion to him/her is just to tread carefully here, where there's little to be gained, and to focus instead on the actual legal/regulatory proceedings, which is the only place where it really counts.
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