Charles “Chip” LaChaussee has joined the firm’s Los Angeles Office as a partner.  Mr. LaChaussee is a highly accomplished litigation attorney, who has defended claims against, and prosecuted claims on behalf of, broker-dealers his entire career.  As former in-house counsel to several financial institutions, he brings a distinctive set of skills, experiences, and insights to his litigation practice.  Before joining Winget Spadafora & Schwartzberg, Chip served as an in-house litigation attorney at Prudential Securities from 1992 until 2006, as a Compliance Manager and registered principal at WAMU Investments from 2006 until 2008, and at a regional broker dealer and investment advisor from 2008 until 2022.  During this time, Chip managed law firms in defending a wide variety of wealth and investment management litigation and arbitration matters and handled his own portfolio of securities and intra-industry arbitrations as first-chair trial counsel, ultimately trying over 100 cases to conclusion at arbitration hearings throughout the United States.  Mr. LaChaussee has significant experience handling matters in binding arbitrations throughout the country at FINRA, AAA, and Jams, having arbitrated or mediated hundreds of disputes to conclusion. His experience includes defending broker dealers and financial professionals in hundreds of arbitration and litigation matters, involving an array of issues including selling away, misappropriation of funds, expungement, investment suitability, churning, fraud, and product due diligence.  He offers his financial services, corporate and individual clients sophisticated legal representation primarily in the areas of securities litigation, securities regulatory and enforcement actions, and third-party discovery and litigation matters.  In addition to his litigation practice, Chip has also represented clients in regulatory matters before FINRA, the SEC, the Certified Financial Planning Board, and state securities and insurance agencies throughout the country.