UBS Customers Seeking $23M Over Tesla Stock Losses

UBS Financial Broker Runs The Burish Group in the Midwest

If you are an investor who suffered losses while working with UBS broker Andrew Burish, please contact our broker fraud attorneys at Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas (SSEK Law Firm at investorlawyers.com).

Burish is considered a top UBS financial advisor who is head of The Burish Group in Madison, Wisconsin. He is accused of repeatedly recommending the short-selling of Tesla, Inc. shares, causing over $23M in losses for four couples, who are all related, and another investor. Tesla is an electric vehicle and clean energy company founded by billionaire Elon Musk.

Over the years, SSEK Law Firm has represented many investors in their Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration cases against UBS Financial. Among the claims we’ve brought include those involving the brokerage firm’s Yield Enhancement Strategy (UBS YES) and its recommendation of Puerto Rico bond and closed-end bonds to many of its customers.

Call our investment fraud lawyers at (800) 259-9010 today to discuss whether you have grounds for a FINRA arbitration claim.

Burish Has Been Accused of Unsuitability Before

Forbes listed Andrew Burish as the #1 broker in Wisconsin, while Barron’s has placed him on its Top 100 Financial Advisers list.

According to Burish’s BrokerCheck record, in February, claimants filed a nearly $23.1M FINRA arbitration claim in which they allege that he recommended the unsuitable investing strategy of short-selling their Tesla stock.

They contend that he continued to recommend that they keep holding the positions even though their losses were growing. The investors say that Burish didn’t give them a “balanced view of the risk of loss” related to shorting Tesla and they are accusing UBS of breach of fiduciary duty.

The lead claimants are Dennis Hansen and his wife, who lost $16.5 million. They eventually covered their shorts and closed out their positions in Tesla. Both moves were contrary to Burish’s advice. UBS maintains that all the claimants in this FINRA arbitration case are sophisticated investors who had the risk tolerance level for the investment strategy they recommended.

A $20M FINRA arbitration claim involving Burish that was brought in January 2021 was denied. Another customer dispute, filed in 2010 and alleging unsuitability involving Lehman structured products, was settled with UBS for $1M.

The Burish Group Faces Even More Scrutiny

This $23M unsuitability case is not the first time that The Burish Group, which oversees over $4B in client assets, has come under scrutiny.

In 2018, UBS fired three people at the firm related to one broker failing to close out a trade, which led to investment losses. In 2019, the brokerage firm ended up having to pay one of the individuals that were let go, regional compliance officer Mark Munizzi, $11M for defamation related to his termination. Last year, an Illinois state court rejected UBS’s motion to vacate that award. Andrew Burish has worked 38 years in the industry. He began working at UBS Financial in 1984. Prior to that, he spent 1 year at Piper, Jaffray & Hopwood.

Broker Fraud Lawyers Not Afraid to Fight Big Wall Street Firms

SSEK Law Firm has the experience, knowledge, resources, and skills to go up against big Wall Street Firms if it means fighting for investors’ financial recovery. We’ve represented thousands of clients over the years and recovered many millions of dollars on their behalf.

Call (800) 259-9010 today or contact us online if you suffered losses while working with The Burish Group or any UBS Financial broker or investment advisor.