Colling, Gilbert, Wright & Carter Securites Fraud

The news continues to get worse for Charles Schwab YieldPlus (SWYSX and SWYPX) victims. Schwab was offering "good will" payments to select Schwab YieldPlus fund holders who sustained losses. This was documented in my May 19, 2008 blog entry. These "good will" payments are actually settlements as YieldPlus owners must sign a release to receive compensation. Even then, the payments were typically in the 2 to 10cents on the dollar loss range. Also it is believed Charles Schwab does not include reinvested dividends in their loss calculations.

Very recently Schwab has begun offering clients discounted commissions or fees instead of cash payments. The offers still work out to the same cents on the dollar loss offers Schwab was making earlier but now clients must remain with the firm to recoup any type of compensation for their losses. Some clients find this insulting after the way this fund was represented as an alternative to money market with a slightly higher yield and slightly higher risk. Most investors would not knowingly risk 25 or 30% of their principal for a half to one percent higher yield.

The attorneys at Colling Gilbert Wright & Carter believe filing an individual arbitration claim, rather then participating in a class action or settling with Schwab, offers clients the best opportunity to recover a meaningful portion of their YieldPlus losses.