Steven B. Caruso

• Telephone: 203.249.0455
• Email: sbcaruso@aol.com

Steven B. Caruso, the resident partner in the New York City office of Maddox Hargett & Caruso, P.C. until his retirement from the firm in September 2021, concentrated his practice on the representation of public investors in securities arbitration and litigation proceedings since the firm was founded in 1991.

Prior to joining Maddox Hargett & Caruso, Mr. Caruso was associated with several brokerage firms in the securities industry and was engaged in the private practice of securities law, which concentrated on providing representation in securities arbitration and litigation matters. His prior securities-related positions include having served as General Counsel for a national brokerage firm with approximately 500 institutional and retail account executives in 15 branch offices; Managing Director of Corporate Finance and Investment Banking for a national brokerage firm with approximately 900 institutional and retail account executives in 33 branch offices; and Chairman of the Board of Directors of an Underwriter of an open-ended investment management company.

Professional Recognitions

In both December and April 2014, Mr. Caruso was selected as a judge for Invest-Write, a national investment strategy writing competition for elementary, middle and high school students, sponsored by the Securities Industry & Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Foundation.

In June 2013, Mr. Caruso was named Chairman of the Discovery Task Force Committee (DTFC) of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) which is the advisory group, established in conjunction with a directive from the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission, that will review substantive issues relating to discovery in arbitration proceedings that are conducted under the auspices of the FINRA Code of Arbitration Procedure. He first became a public member of the DTFC in May 2011.

In July 2012, Mr. Caruso was named a director emeritus of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (PIABA), a national organization of lawyers who represent investors in securities arbitration and litigation proceedings.

In March 2012, Mr. Caruso testified before the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises, at the hearing entitled “The Securities Investors Protection Corporation: Past, Present & Future.”

In June 2011, Mr. Caruso was nominated to serve as a public member of the Nasdaq OMX BX Arbitration Committee, which is the advisory group that provides recommendations on rules, regulations and procedures governing arbitrations, mediations and dispute resolution for the Nasdaq and Boston Stock Exchanges.

In February 2011, Mr. Caruso was named Chairman of the National Arbitration and Mediation Committee (NAMC) of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) which is the advisory group that provides recommendations on rules, regulations and procedures governing arbitrations, mediations and dispute resolution. He first became a public member of the NAMC in February 2009.

In September 2010, Mr. Caruso testified before the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises, at the hearing entitled “Assessing the Limitations of the Securities Investor Protection Act.”

In June 2010, Mr. Caruso was nominated to serve as a member of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) Modernization Task Force which is a task force that was convened, at the recommendation of the U.S. Congress, to review the mission and operations of SIPC so as to provide recommendations to SIPC’s Board of Directors for legislative changes and other potential reforms to protect investors and reinforce confidence in the capital markets.

In August 2007, Mr. Caruso was recognized as one of the “Top Ten to Watch,” by the Board of Editors of Registered Rep Magazine, as an individual who will impact the major trends and issues in the financial services industry in the coming years.

In October 2007, Mr. Caruso completed his term as President of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association (“PIABA”), a national organization of lawyers who represent investors in securities arbitration and litigation proceedings. Between 2002 and 2011, he served as a member of the PIABA Board of Directors, held other officer and executive committee positions and, in October 2011, he was named as a member of the Board of Editors of the PIABA Bar Journal.

Mr. Caruso has been quoted extensively in media outlets including: The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, Fox News, Newsweek Magazine, Securities Week, Newsday, Bloomberg Television, Bloomberg News, PBS Nightly Business Report, Dow Jones Newswire, Reuters, Institutional Investor, Investment News, Businessweek Magazine, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Baltimore Sun, Boston Herald, Los Angeles Times, Crain’s New York, Associated Press Television, TheStreet.com, CBS Marketwatch, National Public Radio, ADR World.com, Registered Rep Magazine, Mortgage Risk Magazine, Financial News Online, Investment Advisor Magazine, Financial Advisor Magazine, Individual Investor Magazine, and Online Investor Magazine.

Mr. Caruso is a member of the New York City Bar Association, the American Bar Association (Section of Business Law, Securities Law Litigation Subcommittee), the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, and previously served as a National Association of Securities Dealers arbitrator.

Bar Admissions

• New York State Bar, 1981
• U.S. Supreme Court, 2003
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, 2000
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit, 2012
• U.S. Federal District Court, Southern District of New York, 1981
• U.S. Federal District Court, Eastern District of New York, 1981
• U.S. Tax Court, 1981

Publications

• Understanding the Assertion of Legal Privileges in Arbitration Proceeding, The Neutral Corner, FINRA Dispute Resolution, Vol. No. 1 (2021). 
• Arbitrators Beware: The Defense that the Delivery of a Prospectus Constitutes a “Get Out of Jail Free Card” for Financial Professionals is Fake News, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration (2020).
• Arbitrator Withdrawals Undermine the Arbitration Process, The Neutral Corner, FINRA Dispute Resolution, Vol. No. 3 (2019).
• An Introduction to FINRA’s National Arbitration and Mediation Committee, The Neutral Corner, FINRA Dispute Resolution, Vol. No. 1 (2018).
• Post-Settlement Expungements: An Investor Protection Problem that Continues to Wait for a FINRA Solution, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration (2017).
• Non-Attorney Representatives (“NARs”) – Do They Present a Clear & Present Danger to the Integrity of FINRA Arbitration?, Association of the Bar of the City of New York (2017).
• Arbitrator Disclosures: Requests for Additional Information, The Neutral Corner, FINRA Dispute Resolution, Vol. No. 4 (2016)
• Ethical Implications of the Phantom Designation of Expert Witnesses in FINRA Securities Arbitration Proceedings, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2016
• Definition of a FINRA Customer: To Be or Not To Be – That Is the Ultimate Question, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2015
• Discovery in FINRA Arbitration, The Neutral Corner, FINRA Dispute Resolution, Vol. No. 2 (2015).
• FINRA Six-Year Eligibility Rule 12206: The Purchase Date is Often Not the Triggering Occurrence or Event Giving Rise to the Claim, PIABA Bar Journal, Volume 20, No. 1 (2013).
• All Public Arbitrator Panels: A More Level Playing Field, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2013
• Arbitrator Challenges Under the FINRA Code of Arbitration Procedure for Customer Disputes, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2010
• The Mandatory Industry Arbitrator: An Endangered Species on the Precipice of Extinction, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2009
• Sunshine May be the Best Disinfectant for What Ails Securities Arbitration: A Discussion of the 2008 SICA Empirical Study of Fairness, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2008
• Effective Closing Statements From the Perspective of Counsel for the Customer-Claimant, New York State Bar Association, Securities Arbitration 2007
• Essential Principles for Honorable Arbitrators, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2007
• Motions to Dismiss: A Predatory Tactic That Must be Extinguished, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, New York, N.Y. 2007
• Ethical Standards for Securities Arbitrators: A Statistical Perspective of Potential Partiality (Bias), Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2006
• Arbitrator Training in the Securities Dispute Arena, The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation 2005
• Discovery Objections Which are Irrelevant, Unduly Burdensome and are Reasonably Calculated to Lead to the Concealment of Admissible Evidence, New York State Bar Association, Securities Arbitration 2004
• Mutual Funds: Trends, Discovery, Abuses & Exhibits, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, Bonita Springs, Florida 2004
• Model Arbitrator Instructions: Luxury or Emerging Necessity, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2004
• Ethical Considerations in Settlement Agreements, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, New York, N.Y. 2004
• Examination of the Adverse Broker: Unimpeachable Questions with an Internet Twist, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration 2001

Speaking Engagements

• Products Practicum: Tips for Trying Product “De Jour” Arbitrations, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2020.
• Role of FINRA’s National Arbitration & Mediation Committee (“NAMC”) in the Securities Arbitration Arena, FINRA Dispute Resolution Offsite Staff Conference, Rye Brook, N.Y. 2019.
• Recent & Upcoming Developments in FINRA Arbitration and Mediation, Practicing Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2019.
• Recent & Upcoming Developments in FINRA Arbitration and Mediation, Practicing Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2018.
• Become a FINRA Arbitrator, FINRA Recruitment Conference, Hartford, CT. 2018.
• Become a FINRA Arbitrator, FINRA Recruitment Conference, Buffalo, N.Y. 2018.
• Arbitration Procedures and Practical Tips, FINRA Annual Conference, Washington, D.C. 2018.
• Recent & Upcoming Developments in FINRA Arbitration and Mediation, Practicing Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2017.
• Role of FINRA’s National Arbitration & Mediation Committee (“NAMC”) in the Securities Arbitration Arena, FINRA Dispute Resolution Offsite Staff Conference, Rye Brook, N.Y. 2017.
• Hot Topics in Securities Arbitration and Mediation, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, New York, N.Y. 2017.
• Securities Arbitration & Mediation Strategies, Investor Rights Clinic, Pace University Law School, White Plains, N.Y. 2017.
• Selected Ethical Issues in Securities Arbitration, Practicing Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2016
• Securities Arbitration & Mediation Strategies, Investor Rights Clinic, Pace University Law School, White Plains, N.Y. 2016
• The FINRA Dispute Resolution Task Force Report – Now What?, Securities Arbitration Commentator, Podcast Presentation 2016
• Utilizing Mediation to Navigate the Perils of Electronic Discovery in Arbitration, American Bar Association & FINRA, Webinar Presentation 2016
• Arbitration: The Definition of Customer and Evolution of Fiduciary Duty, Practicing Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2015
• Securities Arbitration & Mediation, Investor Rights Clinic, Pace University Law School, White Plains, N.Y. 2015
• Understanding the Arbitration & Expungement Process, FINRA Annual Conference, Washington, D.C. 2015
• Securities Arbitration Strategies, Investor Rights Clinic, Pace University Law School, White Plains, N.Y. 2014
• The Wolf of Wall Street: Behind the Scenes at Stratton-Oakmont, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Heyman Center on Corporate Governance, New York, N.Y. 2014.
• Arbitration Practicum on Product Cases & Ethical Issues in Securities Arbitration, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2013
• Arbitration, FINRA Annual Conference, Washington, D.C. 2013
• Complex & Non-Traditional Investments, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, Austin, Texas 2012
• Arbitrator Selection Techniques in the New Environment, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, Rancho Mirage, California 2011
• Arbitrator Selection & Challenges, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2010
• Arbitration Case Trends, FINRA Annual Conference, Baltimore, MD 2010
• Securities Arbitration – Practitioners’ Perspectives on the System, American Bar Association, New York, N.Y. 2008
• Hot Topics & Recent Changes in Securities Arbitration, American Bar
  Association, New York, N.Y. 2008
• Effective Closing Statements From the Perspective of Counsel for the Customer-Claimant, New York State Bar Association, Securities Arbitration 2007, New York, N.Y. 2007
• Securities Arbitration Strategies, St. John’s University School of Law, Queens, New York 2007
• Essential Principles for Honorable Arbitrators, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2007
• Hot Topics in Securities Arbitration and Mediation, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, New York, N.Y. 2007
• Hot Topics in Securities Arbitration and Mediation, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, New York, N.Y. 2005.
• Discovery in Securities Arbitration Proceedings, New York State Bar Association, Securities Arbitration 2004, New York, N.Y. October 2004
• Mutual Funds: Trends, Discovery, Abuses & Exhibits, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, Bonita Springs, Florida 2004
• Model Arbitrator Instructions, Practising Law Institute, Securities Arbitration, New York, N.Y. 2004
• Ethical Considerations in Settlement Agreements, Association of the Bar of the City of New York, New York, N.Y. 2004
• Uniform Prudent Investor Act, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, La Quinta, California 2003
• Trade Execution and Order Execution, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, Amelia Island, Florida 2001
• Discount Brokers and On-Line Trading Cases, Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, San Antonio, Texas 2000

Education

• B.A. — American University, 1977
• J.D. — Hofstra University, School of Law, 1980