A settlement was reached between Merrill Lynch and a former Miami Dolphins player over his complaints against a barred broker, according to ThinkAdvisor.
Merrill agreed to pay $1.2 million to Sean Smith, a cornerback who spent four seasons with Miami and also played for the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders.
Smith filed a complaint in July 2025 accusing broker Isaiah Thomas Williams Jr. of failing to act in his best interest and recommending an “unsuitable asset allocation strategy,” according to his BrokerCheck record. Smith sought $3.5 million in damages
Williams voluntarily resigned from Merrill in 2024 over allegations related to misappropriation, unsuitable asset allocation, misrepresentations and an improper outside business activity. (OBA)
He was barred by FINRA the following year for refusing to provide information in connection with its investigation into allegations made by Merrill in Form U4 and U5 filings. The findings stated that Merrill had filed a U4 amendment disclosing a customer complaint that alleged Williams engaged in misrepresentation and improper OBAs.
Williams was arrested last year in connection with a matter involving another ex-Dolphins player he was the advisor for, Reshad Jones. According to the charges, Williams stole $1.6 million from Jones’ Bank of America account in more than 130 transactions and wired the money to his own accounts. He also allegedly laundered an additional $1.3 million from Jones’ accounts between 2019 and 2021 by transferring funds to accounts owned by a woman and then shifting most of the money to his own accounts.
Authorities said Williams used the stolen funds for his own personal expenditures, including airline tickets, hotels, car rentals, child support payments, legal fees, rent, clothing and jewelry.
Jones had sought $16 million alleging “misappropriation, unsuitable asset allocation strategy, misrepresentations and an improper outside business activity.” Merrill paid $9.5 million to settle the allegations.
Hyman Cotter routinely represents investors harmed when financial professionals and their firms engaged in misconduct that caused their clients investment losses. Our team includes lawyers who have worked for large financial institutions, including Morgan Stanley and UBS Financial Services, and regulatory bodies such as the SEC. If you think your financial professional or firm engaged in misconduct that caused you investment losses, contact Hyman Cotter at (833) 665-0784 or through our online contact form for a no-cost evaluation of your matter.
