Unfortunately, the commission of fraud by broker, dealer, brokerage firm, and /or investment advisor has become a routine occurrence in the United States today. As technology increases and white-collar crime becomes more sophisticated, and economic downturns increase pressure on financial professionals to earn sufficient commission levels, the incidence of fraud in the securities and financial industry as a whole has increased. Along with the increase in fraud cases, there has been a corresponding increase in the regulation of the security industry and the enforcement of federal and state securities laws, by agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and similar state securities regulation agencies. Therefore, it is essential that financial professionals take care to limit their liability for complaints of fraud to the greatest degree possible, by fully disclosing all material facts to investors, buying and selling securities only with the explicit authorization of investors, and tailoring investment portfolios to meet the investor's short and long term financial goals.