Applications for FINRA Investor Advocacy Program are due by March 18, 2024, at 12:00 p.m.
The Seton Hall School of Law Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") Investor Advocacy Program ("IAP") is one of the nation's 10 live-client securities arbitration clinics. Its twin mandates are (1) to provide zealous advocacy for retail investors of modest means and (2) to promote prophylactic best practices for informed investing.
In an industry whose metrics of success are those which are monetized, we assess achievement against a more humane benchmark. The IAP has negotiated hundreds of thousands of dollars in settlement of retail investor disputes. But we take greater pride in knowing we have restored dignity to those who have come to doubt market integrity.
It is our role to convey the truth with compassion. Most commonly, we explain the statute of limitations, the lack of FINRA jurisdiction over non-member entities and associated persons, and the reality that mere market volatility is not actionable. Sometimes, there simply is no "there," there.
The IAP has acquired a national reputation for being among the vanguard of investor education. Each semester, our student advocates traverse New Jersey’s 21 counties and engage with diverse audiences ranging from grammar school students to residents of assisted living communities. We customize presentations to meet the needs of a given group, thereby ensuring a high level of interactivity.
These proactive initiatives promote greater appreciation of the risks and benefits associated with direct participation in our financial exchanges and awareness of more exotic products including real estate investment trusts.
This full-year, 5-credit offering is available to 3L Day students and 4L Weekend students.
