New York-based Shearson broker Charles Lewis won an aggravated harassment case against 67-year-old Ethel Scull, for phoning Lewis 1,208 times over eight days including 485 times on one day following the October 1987 crash. Scull was concerned her...

Charles Schwab's decision to replace David Pottruck as its CEO is, at its heart, an ironic statement on the firm's commitment to his business philosophy. Pottruck, who spent nearly 20 years with the firm, is legendary for his impassioned preaching...

Merrill Lynch in recent weeks has shuffled a number of branch managers to new offices. The new assignments are partially due to promotions and partially a reaction to managers leaving the firm, according to sources. The recent promotions of Jodi...

Death and taxes are an inevitable part of everyone's life. If you're a registered rep, you can add customer complaints to that short list. It's an article of faith among reps that once a complaint is lodged against them, it's an automatic black...

Harlan Kappel isn't a typical financial planner. For starters, Kappel, with American Express Financial Advisors in Dallas, declines to advise clients on asset allocation, portfolio diversification, mutual fund investments and the like. Indeed, he...

If selling to the affluent were a sport, every day would be game day. For better or worse, in investment sales, there is no practice field, and only serious players should suit up. At the risk of overextending the metaphor, I would further submit...

Stephanie Villalba is a high-ranking Merrill Lynch executive, but on a recent business trip, she found herself in a more humble position. While flying on the firm's corporate jet with some male colleagues, Villalba, who heads up Merrill's European...

In the late 1990s, academic researchers began noticing an interesting but disturbing side effect of the roaring bull market: 401(k) investors consolidating their investment positions. Specifically, instead of diversifying their portfolios, many...

Ordinarily, the phrase in the tank is one that makes investors cringe, but this time around might prove an exception. Tankers, those giant ships that haul everything from oil to iron ore, are in high demand, which means they're likely to have...