The New York Stock Exchange today announced it has taken disciplinary actions against seven individuals, including a Canadian, for violations of NYSE rules and federal securities laws.

One of the more unusual disciplinary actions involves a former exchange member who was censured and handed a five-year ban for “acts detrimental to the interest of the exchange”. After a contested hearing, an NYSE hearing panel found that in 2002, Paul Grassi Jr. inadvertently obtained a blank prescription form from a medical office located on exchange premises, and later tried to use it at a pharmacy to fill an additional prescription.

On appeal, the NYSE board affirmed the hearing panel’s finding of guilt. Grassi has advised the NYSE through counsel that he intends to request a review by the SEC of the NYSE decision in this matter.

In the same notice, the NYSE said that Paul Maines, a former registered rep from Mississauga, Ont., was found guilty of failing to co-operate in an investigation by the NYSE Division of Enforcement. An NYSE hearing panel found that Maines failed to comply with requests by the exchange to appear and testify and to provide a written statement concerning allegations of egregious sales practice misconduct, including misappropriation of customer funds.

The NYSE imposed a penalty on Maines of a censure and bar until he complies with the exchange requests, which will become a permanent bar if he does not comply within three months.

In other cases, a former specialist was permanently barred for failing to cooperate with an investigation; a former registered rep consented to a censure and two-year ban for engaging in an unauthorized outside business activity; a former rep consented to a seven-month bar for sales practice misconduct; and two reps were permanently banned for misappropriating client funds.