The Trusted Investment Advisor When Investments Go Wrong

Posted on January 28th, 2016 by Centennial Law in Going to Court

I trusted my investment advisor blindly – but my investments have gone way down.  Can I do anything?

In this context, “can I do anything” means:  how do I get my money back?  People do not like suing but they will if they have to – and have a good chance of winning.

Can the victim of poor investment advice get their money back from the investment advisor?  Not necessarily - according to a recent decision from the Québec Court of Appeal.

In Mazzarolo v BMO Nesbitt Burns ltée. [2013 QCCA 245], Mr. Mazzarolo signed a form indicating that he had limited investment experience.  His investments did not do well. He sued BMO Nesbitt Burns ltée in the hope of recovering $4,000,000.

Mr. Mazzarolo lost his lawsuit. The Court said that even inexperienced investors must make a minimum effort to understand their investments and must attempt to work with their investment advisors. In other words, the word "blindly" in the title to this article should not be overlooked. An investor cannot place all the responsibility on the investment advisor and then sue the advisor when things go wrong.

Article written by Centennial Law Corp. (Douglas E. Dent)

 

The specific facts of any real life situation can have many unforeseen legal implications. As a result, please note that the general information found in the above article should not be treated as legal advice.