Securities Arbitration & Investor Fraud Recovery
Lost money on a structured product? You may have a claim.
Silver Law Group represents investors nationwide in FINRA arbitration to recover losses from unsuitable, misrepresented, or over-concentrated structured product investments.
Decades
of securities arbitration experience
Millions
recovered for defrauded investors
Nationwide
FINRA arbitration representation
FINRA
arbitration specialists
What Is Structured Product Fraud?
Structured products are complex investments built by banks and sold through brokerage firms and financial advisors. They are marketed with reassuring language — 'income,' 'principal-protected,' 'safe,' 'like a CD' — but underneath they often combine bonds with derivatives in ways that cap your gains, expose you to large losses, and lock up your money. Many were never appropriate for the conservative, income-seeking investors who bought them.
Fraud, in this context, rarely looks like an obvious scam. More often it looks like an advisor who recommended a product that was unsuitable for your age and goals, who downplayed or misstated the real risks, or who concentrated too much of your savings in these notes. When that happens, you may have the right to recover your losses.
If you are confused about what you bought, you are not alone — and that confusion is not your fault. These products are designed to be difficult to understand. The fact that a product was complicated, and that you relied on a professional you trusted, is often central to a claim rather than a reason to stay silent.
Structured Products We Handle
We represent investors who suffered losses across the full range of structured products. Select a product to learn how it is sold, what goes wrong, and what a claim might look like.
Auto-Callable Notes
High coupons that look like income — until the note is called early and your upside is capped while your downside isn't.
Learn moreWorst-Of Notes
Your return depends on the worst performer of several assets — marketed as diversification, but it's the opposite. FINRA is reviewing these in 2026.
Learn morePrincipal-Protected Notes
'Protected' only at maturity, and only if the issuing bank stays solvent. The 2023 Credit Suisse wipeout showed what 'protected' can really mean.
Learn moreReverse Convertibles
A high coupon that can pay you back in depreciated stock instead of cash — effectively a sold put option dressed up as a bond.
Learn moreSteepeners
Interest tied to the spread between long- and short-term rates. When the yield curve flattened and inverted, these got crushed.
Learn moreMarket-Linked CDs
They look like FDIC-insured CDs, but only the principal is insured — the equity-linked returns are not. Sold to investors expecting CD-like safety.
Learn more
Why This Matters Now
Structured products are being sold in record volume. U.S. structured-note sales reached roughly $149 billion in 2024 — up about 46% in a single year — with much of that growth driven by higher-risk notes tied to a handful of volatile technology stocks. As sales have surged, so have investor losses and complaints.
Regulators have taken notice. In 2026, FINRA opened a review of firms' practices around higher-risk structured products, with non-principal-protected 'worst-of' notes specifically in focus. The review examines how firms supervised concentrations in these products — and whether recommendations complied with Regulation Best Interest — for conduct dating back to 2022. FINRA has cautioned that even 'principal protection' may not make a product a conservative, suitable investment for an older investor who needs safety.
Investors are recovering losses. Recent FINRA arbitration awards have held major firms accountable for how structured products were sold — and the plaintiffs' securities bar is bringing more of these cases. The pattern is consistent: products marketed as safe income behaved like concentrated, high-risk bets that many investors never understood.
- $149B
- U.S. structured-note sales in 2024 — a record, up ~46% year over year.
- 2026
- FINRA opens a review of higher-risk 'worst-of' structured notes and how firms supervise them.
- $132M+
- Reported 2025 FINRA arbitration award against a major firm over structured-note overconcentration (incl. punitive damages).
- $1.29M
- Reported 2026 FINRA arbitration award against a brokerage over structured-note losses.
Figures above reflect publicly reported industry data, regulatory announcements, and arbitration awards involving other firms, provided for context. They are not results obtained by Silver Law Group.
Why Silver Law Group
- A practice focused on securities arbitration and investor fraud recovery, not a general firm that dabbles in claims.
- Decades of experience prosecuting claims against brokerage firms and financial advisors before FINRA.
- National representation — we represent investors across the country, wherever the broker did business.
- Recognized leadership in investor protection, with attorneys quoted by financial press and active in the plaintiffs' securities bar.
- Cases handled on a contingency basis in most matters — you generally pay no attorneys' fees unless we recover for you.*
* Fee arrangements vary by matter and are confirmed in writing before any engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
I lost money on a structured note. Do I actually have a claim?
Possibly. Losing money on an investment is not, by itself, a claim. But if a structured product was unsuitable for your situation, if its risks were misrepresented or not explained, or if your account was over-concentrated in these products, you may have grounds to recover through FINRA arbitration. The only way to know is to have the facts reviewed — that review is free and confidential.
My advisor told me the product was 'safe' or 'principal-protected.' Does that matter?
Yes. How a product was described to you is central to a securities claim. Many structured products are sold with reassuring language — 'safe,' 'income,' 'like a CD,' 'principal-protected' — that does not match how the product actually behaves. If you were told one thing and sold another, that gap is exactly what a claim examines.
Is anyone actually doing something about these products?
Yes. In 2026, FINRA opened a review of how firms sell and supervise higher-risk structured products — singling out non-principal-protected 'worst-of' notes — and has reminded firms that a 'principal-protected' label does not make a product suitable for an older investor seeking safety. Separately, investors have won significant FINRA arbitration awards against major brokerage firms over how structured notes were sold. You don't have to wait for a regulator, though: an investor's right to pursue their own claim in FINRA arbitration is independent of any regulatory review.
Why is my dispute handled by FINRA arbitration instead of in court?
When you opened your brokerage account, you almost certainly signed an agreement requiring disputes to be resolved through FINRA arbitration rather than the court system. FINRA arbitration is a private, binding process designed for exactly these securities disputes. It is generally faster than litigation and is the standard forum for investor claims against brokerage firms.
How long does FINRA arbitration take?
Most cases resolve in roughly 12 to 18 months from the filing of the Statement of Claim, though timelines vary with complexity, the amount in dispute, and whether the case settles before a hearing. Many matters settle along the way.
What can I recover?
Depending on the facts, recoverable damages can include your out-of-pocket losses, 'well-managed account' damages (what a suitable, properly managed portfolio would have earned instead), interest, costs, and in some cases a portion of attorneys' fees or punitive damages. Every case is different, and no outcome can be guaranteed.
How much does it cost to pursue a claim?
An initial case evaluation is free. Securities arbitration claims are frequently handled on a contingency-fee basis, meaning attorneys' fees are a percentage of any recovery and you generally owe no attorneys' fees unless there is a recovery. Specific fee arrangements are discussed and confirmed in writing before any engagement.
What should I do right now?
Preserve everything: account statements, the original sales materials, emails and texts with your advisor, and any notes you have. Do not sign anything new from the brokerage firm without understanding it. Then schedule a free, confidential consultation so the facts can be reviewed before any deadlines pass.
Talk to a structured products attorney — for free
Find out whether you have a claim in a free, confidential case evaluation. There is no obligation, and you pay no attorneys' fees unless we recover for you.*