James “Jamie” McLaughlin, chief executive of Geller Family Office Services LLC, the wealth management arm of Geller & Co., left the firm last Friday. Mr. McLaughlin, who came to Geller only last September from Convergent Wealth Advisors, where he was managing director and head of the New York office, confirmed his departure in a phone conversation today but declined to comment further. The Private Asset Management newsletter first reported his departure yesterday. “We agreed with Jamie that our relationship was not a good fit, and that we should amicably part ways,” a Geller representative said. “We wish him well in the future.” The representative also said the firm expects to begin looking for a new chief executive soon. Last month, Geller brought Doug Banbury on board as chief operating officer and chief compliance officer. He previously had been head…

A judge has decided prosecutors have enough evidence to try two former Nebraska City brokers accused of defrauding investors out of more than $20 million. Rebecca Engle and former Nebraska football player Brian Schuster are accused of improperly selling risky investments in several interrelated Florida companies to more than 130 investors. The two had argued that the evidence didn’t support the eight felony counts of securities fraud they each face because investors acknowledged the risks in writing. Prosecutors say many of the clients told investigators they were never fully informed about the hazards, so the written records don’t tell the full story. Gage County District Court Judge Paul Korslund ruled last week that the cases should proceed. He is hearing the Otoe County case because the judges in Otoe and Sarpy counties all excused themselves because of possible conflicts of interest. Schuster’s lawyer, Don Schense, said he didn’t expect the judge…

While I was never one of those Ayn Rand cultists who lionized the anti-collectivist writer — her Soviet-style humorlessness was a bit grim for my tastes — you have to admit she was on to something with John Galt. As you probably remember, the hero of “Atlas Shrugged” was the brilliant inventor-industrialist who goes on strike against the politicians and government and corporate bureaucrats who suck the life out of society’s creative givers. Galt’s message, as explained by Rand in 54,986 words, is: “If you’re going to eat me alive because I’m supposed to be ‘altruistic’ and care about others, well, the hell with you; I’m not doing it anymore.” As a salaried drone who never designed a skyscraper or invented a new source of energy, I’m no hero in the Randian sense. Still…

LPL Financial Corp. has once again wound up in court over a firm it snapped up during its buying binge a few years ago. On Monday, a group of New York City brokers who worked for Independent Financial Marketing Group Inc., which was acquired by LPL in 2008, sued their old firm and LPL, alleging discrimination and harassment based on religion, national origin and race. The four brokers, who filed the suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, are of the Greek Orthodox religion and are of Greek ancestry, ethnicity and heritage, according to the lawsuit. (Click here to read the complaint) At the center of the lawsuit is a series of stinging remarks allegedly made by a sales manager, Matt Baval, who worked for IFMG and is currently registered with LPL. According to the lawsuit, Mr. Baval said that he wanted to…