Darlene Pasieczny

Darlene Pasieczny ("Pah-shetch-nee") is a securities and fiduciary litigator and appellate attorney at Samuels Yoelin Kantor LLP. She leads the Investor Defenders practice group to recover investment losses caused by broker or registered financial adviser misconduct or defective securities products, in FINRA arbitration and other dispute resolution forums.

Darlene also represents trustees, personal representatives, beneficiaries, and interested parties in trust and estate disputes such as will contests, undue influence claims, nonjudicial amendments to trust terms, and elder financial abuse cases. These are typically cases brought before probate courts.

Darlene is also an experienced appellate attorney, having successfully represented clients in civil appeals before the Oregon and Washington appellate courts, in briefing to the Supreme Court of the United States, and before the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit.

Securities Law

Stockbroker & Investment Fraud

Appeals & Appellate

Civil Appeals

Arbitration & Mediation

Business - Arbitration/Mediation, Consumer - Arbitration/Mediation

• Trust and Estate Litigation
• Fiduciary Litigation

• Credit Cards Accepted
• Contingent Fees
  Fee arrangements may include contingency, billable hour, or hybrid of the two. It depends on the case and situation, and I am happy to discuss what fee structure is available during the initial consultation.

Oregon

Oregon State Bar

ID Number: 124172

Since 2012

Washington

Washington State Bar Association

ID Number: 51728

Since 2017

U.S. District Court, District of Oregon

Partner

Samuels Yoelin Kantor LLP

2015 - Current

Associate

Banks Law Office PC

2012 - 2015

Lewis & Clark Law School

J.D. (2012)

2009 - 2012

Honors: Magna Cum Laude

Columbia University

M.A. (2003)

2001 - 2003

Reed College

B.A. (2001)

1997 - 2001

Honors: Phi Beta Kappa

Outstanding Service Award

Public Investors Advocate Bar Association

2017

Top Rated Securities Litigation Attorney, Rising Stars 2021, 2022

Oregon Super Lawyers

Multnomah Bar Association

Member

Current

Oregon Women Lawyers, Portland Chapter

Member

Current

Oregon State Bar Appellate Practice Section

Executive Committee

2022 - Current

FINRA's National Arbitration and Mediation Committee

Public Member

2021 - Current

Washington State Bar  # 51728

2017 - Current

States Adopting NASAA's Model Act to Protect Vulnerable Adults from Financial Exploitation (Mandatory and Permissive Conduct by Financial Advisors)

PIABA Bar Journal, Vol. 26, No. 2

2019

New Tools Help Financial Professionals Prevent Elder Abuse

Oregon State Bar Elder Law Newsletter

January, 2019

Recent Developments at FINRA, 33rd Annual Northwest Securities Institute, Portland, OR

2013

Latest Developments in FINRA Securities Arbitration, 17th Annual ABA Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference, Seattle, WA

2015

ABA

Creditors’ Claims, 2015 ABCs of Decedents’ Estate Administration, Portland, OR

2015

Oregon Law Institute

Clearing Firm Liability, Securities Law Seminary, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL

2015

PIABA

Blowing the Whistle Under Dodd-Frank & SOX: The SEC’s and CFTC’s Whistle-blower Program, Securities Law Seminar, San Diego, CA

2016

PIABA

Moderator

Business Law Certificate

Lewis and Clark Law School

2012

Q. Do distributions have to be made to all beneficiaries at the same time?

September 6, 2022

A: This may be true. Generally speaking, brokerage firms and custodians of retirement accounts have contractual terms in the account agreement regarding the timing of distributions to named beneficiaries after the death of an account holder. Additionally, depending on state and federal law, and the type of account, the institution may have fiduciary duties to all named beneficiaries. That would mean that it cannot give preferential treatment to one beneficiary to the detriment of another. Complications may arise if there is a "moving target" as to the account valuation and a percent distribution to multiple beneficiaries.

If you are running into difficulties in communicating with the firm's customer service representative, you might consider contacting an estate planning attorney or securities litigation attorney.

Estate planning attorneys frequently deal with brokerage firms and retirement account custodians, and it could just be a matter of connecting to the right department to clear things up. Alternatively, if a firm is inappropriately withholding distributions to named beneficiaries, a securities attorney may get the firm's attention to take corrective action.

Good luck! ... Read More