Christopher T. Vernon, a founding partner of Vernon Healy, currently holds a Martindale-Hubbell AV rating, the highest available to an attorney. His practice focuses on the litigation and arbitration of business and financial disputes, with an emphasis on securities and investment fraud. He represents investors throughout the United States in complex cases involving hedge funds, tax shelters, structured products, real estate, insurance, retirement assets (including 401(k) and pension), bonds, variable and equity indexed annuities, mutual funds, and other financial matters.
Some of Mr. Vernon’s high-profile and noteworthy cases include:
■ A case in which he secured a $2.66 million arbitration award against one of the World’s largest financial institutions on behalf of a Florida retiree. Press coverage recognized the award as one of the top 20 largest awards in the history of securities arbitration in Florida. Later, the failure of the industry to note the $2.66 million award on the offending broker’s public report card, or CRD, was cited by the press as a glaring loophole in the regulatory disclosure system that’s supposed to alert investors to black marks in a broker’s background. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has since proposed closing the loophole.
■ A precedent-setting favorable ruling before the Florida Supreme Court in which Mr. Vernon helped clear a legal hurdle for investors who want to pursue their claims in court versus the mandatory arbitration system required by most brokerage firms. The Florida Supreme Court ruled in favor of Mr. Vernon’s client, Steven W. Saldukas, in the case styled Raymond James Financial Services Inc. and Richard VandenBerg v. Steven W. Saldukas and Stesal Investments LLC. Wall Street’s requirement that aggrieved investors pursue claims in mandatory arbitration versus court has been the subject of congressional hearings.
■ His successful representation of investors swindled in the Maricopa hedge fund scheme in which investors around the country lost close to $60 million. The architect of the scheme, David Mobley, was later convicted of federal fraud and money laundering charges and sentenced to serve 17 years in federal prison.
Throughout his career, Mr. Vernon has been an outspoken and high-profile advocate for the criminal prosecutions of financial and white collar crime by state and federal law enforcement authorities.
Passionate about protecting investors, Mr. Vernon has made numerous television, radio, and speaking appearances regarding financial issues, and he has been quoted in the national, state, and local press. He has authored numerous articles on financial issues in the law, and his speaking appearances include the national conventions of the American Association for Justice (AAJ) and the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (PIABA).
Mr. Vernon has served as a continuing education instructor for CPAs, trust and estate and business litigation attorneys throughout the state of Florida and he has conducted training for the Florida Office of Financial Regulation.
Mr. Vernon has been qualified as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association (AAA), Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) (formerly, NASD and NYSE), National Futures Association (NFA) and the 20th Judicial Circuit of Florida. In addition, Mr. Vernon is active in numerous legal, philanthropic and educational organizations. He received a gubernatorial appointment to the Twentieth Judicial Nominating Commission in 2008 and he was previously appointed by the governor to serve on the Edison College District Board of Trustees.
Bar Admissions include: State of Florida Bar (1988), U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida (1988), United States Supreme Court (1995), and United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (2002).
He received his Juris Doctor from the Stetson University College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida in 1987. He graduated cum laude with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Finance from Florida State University in Tallahassee in 1984.
Contact Chris Vernon by phone at (239) 649-5390 or by email
