by Mike Caswell
Jordan Capital Markets Inc. and one of its employees, Nicholas Gregory, are facing a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of British Columbia complaining about unauthorized discretionary trading in the account of a Calgary woman. According to the suit, Mr. Gregory traded a TSX Venture Exchange company, Emperor Minerals Ltd., without any instructions from the client. Moreover, the trades were a conflict of interest, according to the suit, because Mr. Gregory owned and traded the same company himself.
The allegations are contained in a notice of claim filed at the Vancouver courthouse on Thursday, Jan. 24, on behalf of Heather Couillard of Calgary. The suit complains about losses that Ms. Couillard suffered in an account she opened at Jordan in August, 2011. She does not say how much money she lost, but blames Mr. Gregory for the loss, and says Jordan as his employer is vicariously liable.
According to the suit, Mr. Gregory carried out a number of unauthorized trades in Emperor Minerals between August, 2011, and June 2012, for the account. Ms. Couillard claims that he bought and sold shares of the company in a manner that benefited him through commissions and in his own trading of the same company. Mr. Gregory never informed Ms. Couillard that he owned Emperor Minerals shares, or that he was trading the company for his own benefit, the suit states.