Former financial adviser pleads guilty to dishonest conduct
Former adviser and royal commission witness Sam Henderson has pleaded guilty to dishonest conduct and defective disclosure charges.
In a public announcement this week, ASIC stated that Sam Maxwell Henderson has today pleaded guilty to one “rolled up” charge of dishonest conduct, an offence under section 1041G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and two counts of making a disclosure document available to a person knowing it to be defective, contrary to section 952D(2)(a)(ii) of the Corporations Act.
ASIC alleged that Mr Henderson, between 1 July 2010 and November 2017, while the chief executive officer, director and senior financial adviser of Henderson Maxwell Pty Ltd, engaged in dishonest conduct when he made false representations that he had a Master of Commerce when he did not hold that qualification.
A dishonest conduct offence under s1041G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) carries a maximum penalty in the local court of two years’ imprisonment or a fine not exceeding 120 penalty units, or both, ASIC said.
ASIC also alleged Mr Henderson breached s952D(2)(a)(ii) in 2014 and 2016 by giving two clients a Financial Services Guide, containing the false representation that he held a Master of Commerce (Financial Planning).
Each defective disclosure offence under s952D(2)(a)(ii) of the Corporations Act carries a maximum penalty in the local court of 12 months’ imprisonment or a fine not exceeding 60 penalty units, or both.
Mr Henderson will be sentenced in the Downing Centre Local Court on 13 October 2020. The matter is being prosecuted by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, following a referral of a brief of evidence from ASIC.
ASIC previously banned Mr Henderson from providing financial services for a period of three years. It was found that Mr Henderson failed to act in the best interests of his clients, provide appropriate advice and prioritise his clients’ interests when providing personal financial advice.
This included failing to adequately investigate and assess his clients’ existing deferred benefit superannuation products, which resulted in a financial losses for one of his clients, ASIC said in a statement.
Miranda Brownlee
Miranda Brownlee is the deputy editor of SMSF Adviser, which is the leading source of news, strategy and educational content for professionals working in the SMSF sector.
Since joining the team in 2014, Miranda has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest superannuation stories in Australia, and has reported extensively on technical strategy and legislative updates.
Miranda also has broad business and financial services reporting experience, having written for titles including Investor Daily, ifa and Accountants Daily.
