Following the 10th anniversary of Miami Law's Investor Rights Clinic, Scott A. Eichhorn has taken over the reins as director after a stretch as acting director.
At the clinic, Eichhorn supervises and teaches student interns the substantive law and practical skills necessary to handle securities arbitration and mediation cases before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. FINRA is the self-regulatory organization that administers the largest forum for the arbitration of securities claims in the United States. Arbitration is the most widely used means of resolving disputes in the securities industry.
Over the past decade, the clinic has conducted more than 500 intakes, opened 107 client matters, and recovered more than $1.4 million for 67 clients.
The Investor Rights Clinic is a one-semester clinic staffed by second and third-year law students representing under-served investors in securities arbitration claims against their brokers. The clinic provides a resource to individuals of modest means who have suffered investment losses as a result of broker misconduct but, due to the size of their claim, cannot find legal representation. The clinic, which does not charge attorney's fees, is funded by a grant from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation and Miami Law.
"What a privilege it is to continue the important work of the Investor Rights Clinic," said Eichhorn, who started at the clinic as associate director. "I'm excited and honored to keep working with our incredible students and staff and advocating for the protection of investors at a time of rapid evolution in the securities markets."
Eichhorn was recently the subject of a cover story in Wealth Management magazine, "Lost in Arbitration," focusing on how pro-bono law clinics, like Miami Law's, serve small clients and low-value claims that help keep the brokerage industry honest. He also published an article in the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association Bar Journal in October 2022. He spoke on it at PIABA Securities Law Seminar in San Antonio, Texas, the same month.
Eichhorn joined Miami Law in 2012 after a seven-year stint in private practice specializing in securities litigation in state and federal courts and FINRA arbitration.
"Scott Eichhorn has been an important part of our Investor Rights Clinic for a long time." said David Yellen, dean and M. Minnette Massey Professor of Law. "I'm delighted that he will now be leading the clinic, which provides a great educational experience for our students and valuable legal assistance to its clients."
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