James Eccleston

Jim Eccleston is the chief strategist and lead attorney for all clients of the Eccleston Law. His 28-year legal career has earned him the highest awards and distinctions by both his clients and his peers. Among the top 5% of all attorneys, Jim Eccleston has earned awards and distinctions such as:

• Martindale-Hubbell, the coveted AV Peer Review Rating
• Martindale-Hubbell, AV Preeminent Attorney
• Illinois Super Lawyer, in every year since its inception in 2005
• Illinois Leading Lawyer, Employment Law category

Jim Eccleston is a highly acclaimed securities litigation lawyer for good reason.  First, he has business expertise in financial services industry, and holds / has held numerous securities licenses, including the investment adviser Series 65, securities principal Series 24, and securities representative Series 7.  Additionally, in the FINRA Dispute Resolution Forum, he is and serves as a chairperson-qualified arbitrator, as well as a qualified FINRA mediator. Finally, for many years Jim Eccleston has written articles and monthly columns for publications and magazines such as: 

• Chicago Lawyer
• The Chicago Daily Law Bulletin
• On Wall Street
• InvestmentNews
• Wealth Manager
• Research Magazine
• Registered Representative

In addition, Jim Eccleston sponsors FinancialCounsel.com and a blog (Financial Counsel by Eccleston Law) featuring articles and commentary on current events and investigations. He has appeared on CNN, First Business Morning News, WCIU Chicago, and various radio talk shows. Jim Eccleston frequently is quoted in the press.

Attorneys and financial advisors nationwide select Jim Eccleston to educate them about securities and employment law. A few of Jim Eccleston's accomplishments include:

• A white paper on "Unintended Consequence: The Protocol that Binds," for the Practical Compliance and Risk Management for the Securities Industry (2009)
  
  
• Presented a speech on "Arbitration Basics" at the Practicing Law Institute's program on Federal Civil Practice Update (2010)
  
  
• Spoke before the Practicing Law Institute on "The Wild West; Navigating the Uncertain Waters of Arbitration, Generally and Particularly with Securities Matters" (2011)
  
  
• Presented a speech on "Avoiding Lawsuits as a Financial Adviser" for the Financial Planning Association in January (2011)
  
  
• Presented a speech on "Transition, Exiting or Merging: It's About Choices (and Advance Planning)" at the Florida Symposium for Financial Planning (FPA of Tampa Bay, Florida) (2012)
  
  
• Co-authored a white paper "An Analysis of the Potential Impact of a Uniform Fiduciary Standard Upon Broker-Dealers, Registered Investment Advisers and Dually-Registered Advisers," for Practical Compliance and Risk Management for the Securities Industry (2013)
  
  
• Co-authored a white paper "2014: A New Era in Securities Supervision and Compliance Developments", for Practical Compliance and Risk Management for the Securities Industry (2014)

Likewise, Jim Eccleston has presented webinars on various subjects such as:

• Key Guidance on Hedge Fund Investing
• Avoiding Traps in Your Transition
• The Evolution of Fiduciary Liability For Investment Losses
• Recovering Your Losses From Misguided Real Estate Investments
• Buying or Selling An Investment Advisory Firm
• Implementing Effective Email and Document Retention Policies and Procedures