I have a GRIPE...In August 2007, 6 months after joining Edward Jones, Jonathan G(JG) took over the role as Financial Adviser for PG from a senior Financial Advisor. Taking the role of advising his “to be” fiancée on how to invest/use her minor children’s UTMA Custodian Accounts, was undoubtedly, unethical, unprofessional, and a conflict of interest. On September 19, 2007, even though he knew the laws governing UTMA/UGMA accounts (760 ILCS 20/15) and the orders contained within PG's “Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage”, JG conspired with his fiancée to extort $30,000 from the minor’s custodial accounts for their own personal use. JG and PG improperly used these extorted funds for the benefit of JG (medical, food, internet, and home/cell phone expenses used to support him and his home office) and to pay their parental obligations. If not uncovered during the deposition of PG on March 3, 2008, JG and PG would have undoubtedly continued to use the minor’s Custodial Accounts as their own personal “Piggy” bank. In order to protect the remaining funds in the minor’s Custodial Accounts, action was taken by the 16th Judicial Court of Kane County, Illinois to freeze the accounts and remove JG and PG as Advisor and Custodian of the minor’s accounts. Although JG and PG made attempts to dismiss these actions in court, in December 2008, the court upheld these orders. The minor's UTMA/UGMA accounts were transferred from Edward Jones and JG was removed as the Financial Advisor.

On 1/27/2009, A complaint against JG, containing court documents and supporting evidence, was filed with the Office of Resolution at Edward Jones. On 2/17/2009, Mrs. C, a Resolution Counsel, announced that Edward Jones had considered the matter closed. The counsel asked JG a few questions over the phone, disregarded the supporting evidence, and closed the matter quickly. In my opinion, Edward Jones' failure to act against their Financial Advisor shows an indifference to the rights of the individual investor. In this case, they neglected the rights of the two minor children in supporting JG's unethical, unprofessional, and illegal behavior. I am concerned about what type of behavior this indifference will enable in Edward Jones' ranks? Who will be its next victim?

I have dealt with multiple Edward Jones offices in Florida and have never had any problems. The Edward Jones associates I have had experience with always go out of their way to assist me and in some cases to no direct benefit to them. I have had IRA’s and personal investment accounts with them as well. They keep an open line of communication and stay on top of your accounts and stock information. The only problem with Edward Jones is that their branches are not connected. If you relocate, you have to move all your accounts to a new Edward Jones office if you want to access your accounts. It is not like a bank, where you can go to any branch and make a deposit or withdrawal.

I am reviewing Edward Jones as an investment firm. About 10 years ago, I inherited some stocks from my father after he died. I went to an Edward Jones advisor to help me retitle these stocks in my name (which he did, and he did without charge). However, he convinced me to "diversify" my portfolio of stocks and made some recommendations. At the time, the stocks were worth about $24,000. He evaluated my holdings and sold some stocks and purchased others. None of his picks ever really did anything, but he continued to bug me to make changes (after all, that is how he makes his money). I refused, because I wanted to just "hold" them for awhile, so he stopped calling. I recently moved to a new area and decided to find another Edward Jones representative and let him evaluate my portfolio (which is now worth about $16,000, so it's taken a hit). This new guy seemed really interested in me, but he was more interested in the $500,000 I have in TIAA-CREF than in my Edward Jones account. To make a long story short, I am disappointed with this Edward Jones office, too. I've tried to get a recommendation from their corporate offices for someone who could help me sort out the stocks, but they have been unresponsive. I am not very well versed in the stock market, but I know enough to protect myself. I therefore think you need to be cautious when dealing with this firm. They may be OK for some, but not for me. All of their picks have lost money, while the ones I originally started with are doing OK. I will wait until the market turns around and then sell everything at some point and get the heck out of the market!