Cox Press Release

RE: TAMPA NASD ARBITRATION PANEL SENDS A MESSAGE TO SALOMON SMITH BARNEY WITH $283,533.00 ARBITRATION AWARD, INCLUDING MORE THAN $200,000.00 IN PUNITIVE DAMAGES.

Cox Heating & Air-Conditioning has been operating here in the Tampa Bay area since 1958. For much of that time, they worked with Salomon Smith Barney or its corporate predecessors to assist them with their pension and profit-sharing plan. In September of 1998, the trustee of the pension and profit-sharing plan wrote a letter to Salomon Smith Barney requesting that all of the accounts be liquidated. Upon receipt of this correspondence, the local St. Petersburg broker liquidated two (2) of the four (4) accounts. The local representative then attempted to delay the transfer of these accounts and failed to liquidate these accounts, based upon certain alleged documents that were required. Ultimately, the final two accounts were liquidated, some three (3) weeks after the request and, due to the representatives’ failure too timely liquidate, Cox suffered losses in value of approximately $88,000.00. Cox Heating & Air-Conditioning asserted that the written instruction to liquidate the account should have been acted on immediately and that the losses were therefore the responsibility of Salomon Smith Barney.

The Arbitration Panel agreed, and not only made Cox Heating & Air-Conditioning whole by awarding the firm the money that they had lost plus interest; but also ordered that Salomon Smith Barney pay all of the filing fees, expert witness fees and attorneys fees (an amount which will be determined by a separate court). Additionally, Salomon Smith Barney must pay the claimants punitive damages in the amount of $204,957.00.

Local attorney, Jeffrey P. Coleman, of the Coleman Law Firm in Clearwater, Florida, who represented Cox Heating & Air-Conditioning, states “It is encouraging to see a member of the NASD held accountable for the losses sustained in this pension and profit-sharing program. So many of the individuals involved in these plans were small contributors who work day in and day out in the air-conditioning business. These hardworking tradesmen can ill afford to lose any of their precious retirement benefits.” Mr. Coleman also believes that the Arbitration Panel was influenced by the fact that the company managing the pension plan was an affiliated company of Salomon Smith Barney. Says Coleman, “Theses type of punitive damages really send a message to the industry.”

I have attached a copy of the NASD award. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Jeffrey P. Coleman, Esquire at the above address and/or telephone number.

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