SWS FINANCIAL SERVICES

Discharged

THE FIRM RECEIVED CLIENT FEE PAPERWORK THAT DID NOT APPEAR TO MATCH SIGNATURES ON PAPERWORK PREVIOUSLY SUBMITTED FOR THE CLIENT. THE BROKER CLAIMS HIS ASSISTANT SIGNED THE PAPERWORK AND SUBMITTED THE PAPERWORK WITHOUT HIS KNOWLEDGE.

I RECEIVED A CALL ABOUT A DOCUMENT IRREGULARITY. THEY IMPLIED THAT I HAD SIGNED A CUSTOMER DOCUMENT. I RESPONDED THAT I HAD NOT. INVESTIGATION REVEALED MY ASSISTANT HAD SHORT CIRCUITED THE NORMAL SYSTEM, HAVING A PROPERLY EXECUTED DOCUMENT IN HAND BUT ON A FORM THAT HAD BEEN REVISED. SHE HAD REQUESTED A REPLACEMENT FROM THE CLIENT, BUT IN THE INTERIM, PLACED A DOCUMENT INTO THE PAPER FLOW THAT SHE SIGNED TEMPORALLY TO KEEP PAPERWORK FLOWING. UPON DISCOVERY, I HOLD HER THAT THIS APPROACH WAS ALWAYS INAPPROPRIATE AND THAT SHE WAS TERMINATED.