Tara A. LaClairAttorney
Tara LaClair is a director and serves as co-chair of the firm’s Securities Litigation, Enforcement & Compliance Practice Group, focusing her practice on securities arbitration and broker-dealer litigation. She represents national broker-dealers and registered representatives in arbitration, court and regulatory proceedings involving sales practice, compliance and employment matters.
Tara also assists municipal issuers (and other obligated persons) in public offerings, including continuing disclosure matters and regulatory investigations and enforcement actions. With the SEC’s increasing focus in this area, having experienced counsel ready to assist and respond is critical. Tara also routinely assists in the preparation of written policies and procedures, which can help reduce the costs associated with these disclosure obligations and enforcement actions, as well as aiding in controlling your liability exposure under SEC Rule 15c2-12 and/or Rule 10(b)-5.
When municipal activities fall under such scrutiny, Tara assist clients during investigations and enforcement actions to alleviate risks for municipal advisors and issuers, as well as the officials and employees. She helps clients prepare before and during an SEC investigation.
Tara holds an LL.M. in securities and financial institution regulation from Georgetown University Law School and is admitted to practice in California, Michigan and Oklahoma, as well as in the federal courts of Colorado, Ohio and Oklahoma. She appears regularly before the FINRA and the SEC, and interned with the California Department of Corporations.
An accomplished attorney, Tara has been listed as a Super Lawyers Rising Star in 2008 and 2009. She was also listed in Super Lawyers (2013-2014, 2017-2019). She was named to the America’s Top 100 High Stakes Litigators in 2017.*
*Crowe & Dunlevy has no input in the rating methodologies used by Super Lawyers or America’s Top 100.
Representative experience includes*:
- Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated v. Whitney et al; OKND case 4:09-cv-00078-GKF-FHM; (Respondent trial counsel/Related FINRA arbitration Case Number 08-02325 ; All claims denied; Attorney fees awarded; Upheld on appeal)
- Ellen L. Brown v. Neuberger Berman et al, FINRA Case No. 10-01149 (Respondent trial counsel / All claims denied)
- Robert and Debra Korbelick v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, FINRA ID #10-04476; (Respondent Counsel, obtained complete defense verdict, including attorney fees assessed against Claimant)
- Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith Inc et al v. Juntunen et al; Case 5:11-cv-00914-R; (Expungement granted in related FINRA arbitration)
- Pana Merchant v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc., (FINRA Case Number: 08-00381) (Respondent trial counsel/All claims denied)
- RBC Dain Rauscher Inc. v. Morgan Stanely DW Inc. et al; FINRA Case Number 05-06247; (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- F. William Thetford, individually, and on behalf of F. William Thetford, A Professional Corporation v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. et al; NYSE Case Number 2004-015024; (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- Marilyn V. Dietz v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc.; NASD Case Number: 05-01581 (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- John S. Valeriano and Anita L. Valeriano v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. et al; FINRA/NASD Case Number: 05-02376; (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- Stanley Cunningham v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. et al; NYSE Docket: 2003-014830; (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- Jon Steiner v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. et al; NASD Case Number: 05-01715; (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- Thomas A. Wolverton v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc. et al; NASD Case Number: 03-08277; (Respondent trial counsel / all claims denied)
- Ray R. Mize, Individually and as Trustee of the Ray R. Mize Trust, and Cynthia Mize v. National Financial Partners Corp., Retirement Investment Advisors, Inc., Research Holdings, LLC., Bowie, Thurman and Associates, LL.C., Joseph Bowie and Randy Thurman; CJ-2013-5978 (Plaintiff Counsel; After a lengthy discovery battle, we obtained a favorable settlement);
- Schlanger Insurance Trust v. John Hancock Insurance, Inc., et al.; USDC Northern District of OK Case #10-CV-576-TCK TLW (Defense Counsel; Matter Resolved)
- Stanley Pomichter v. Goldman Sachs & Co., and Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.; FINRA Case No.: 07-02913; (Claimant Counsel; Obtained an award in favor of Claimant)
- Diana Vulcan v. Community Medical Center f/k/a Missoula Community Medical Center, and Howard Johnson & Co. a/k/a Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc.; DDV-08-1258, Montana Thirteenth District (Yellowstone, Co.) (Obtained Dismissal for Defendant Merrill Lynch & Co.)
- RBC Dain Rauscher, Inc. v. Morgan Stanley DW, Inc., Dale Frank Johnson, Jr., John Anthony Pennington, Keith Allen Shahan, Samuel Wylie Sloane, Susan Anderson Stroud and James Glenn Tallant, NASD Case No. 05-06247 (Represented respondents in a Raiding case; obtained full defense verdict)
- Thomas DeBacco v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, FINRA Case No.: 16-01635 (Represented respondent and obtained defense verdict)
*Past results afford no guarantee of future results. Every case is different and must be judged on its merits.
Georgetown University Law Center
Washington, D.C.
Master of Laws, (Securities & Financial Regulation)
Pepperdine University School of Law
Malibu, California
Juris Doctor, 2000, (Cum Laude)
Eastern Michigan University
Ypsilanti, Michigan
Bachelor, Business Administration (Finance/Economics)
- California, 1999
- U.S. District Court, Central Division (Central), California, 1999
- Michigan, 2001
- U.S. District Court, District of Colorado, 2003
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Oklahoma, 2004
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Western District of Oklahoma, 2004
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit, 2004
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, 2005
- Oklahoma, 2007
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Oklahoma, 2009
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Oklahoma, 2009
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan, 2013
- FINRA Dispute Resolution Arbitrator
- Cum Laude; Nathan Burkan Memorial Competition for Copyright Law
- American Jurisprudence Award and CALI Awards in Remedies
- Certificate of Special Tribute from the State of Michigan
- Listed in America's Top 100 High Stakes Litigators, 2017
- Ranked in Super Lawyers, Securities Litigation, Energy & Natural Resources, Securities & Corporate Finance, Employment Litigation: Defense (2013, 2014, 2017 - Present)
- Named Super Lawyers Rising Star (2008, 2009)
- "Current Fiduciary Rules Mean Greater Protection for Investors," The Oklahoman (2018)
- "Seniors are advised to discuss disability planning with their advisers," The Oklahoman (2016)
- "Standard severance agreements may need to be revised," The Oklahoman (2016)
- "Consider the Benefits of Arbitration," Article for The Credit Professional Magazine (2015)
- Speaker, "Employment Law Update," Council of Bishops (2018)
- Speaker, “SEC Evolving Regulatory Focus and Concerns,” GA&A (2018)
- Speaker, “Annual Secular Law Briefing,” Council of Bishops (2017)
- Speaker, Oklahoma Society of Certified Public Accountants – Competency and Senior Client Concerns (2017)
- Speaker, Oklahoma Securities Conference – Volatile Stock Markets and Your Senior Clients (2015)
- Speaker, International Pentecostal Holiness Church Conference – Current Issues and Recent Developments (2015)
- Speaker, "Advantages of Alternative Dispute Resolution and Arbitration," 2015 CPI & MACA Conference, March 26-28, 2015, Oklahoma City, OK
- Speaker, Crowe & Dunlevy 2015 Securities Conference: Volatile Stock Markets and Your Senior Clients, December 1, 2015, Oklahoma City, OK
- Speaker, Mid-American Credit Professionals Conference, Benefits of Arbitrating Commercial Disputes (2014)
- Speaker, Oklahoma Securities Conference - Updates in Securities Arbitration (2013)
- Speaker, Heartland Compliance Conference - Current Compliance Topics and Best Practices (2013)
- Speaker, Heartland Compliance Conference - Case Studies and Best Practices (2012)
- Speaker, Oklahoma Society of Certified Public Accountants - Compliance Techniques for Financial Planners (2010)
