A British Columbia Securities Commission panel has upheld allegations that a former Vancouver-based securities salesperson violated securities rules when she failed to ensure that certain speculative and illiquid investments were suitable for her clients, but dismissed related allegations against her employer and one of its principals.

The commission panel found that Jill MacGregor Bock contravened section 48 — the suitability rule — when she sold exempt investments to certain clients while she was employed by Foresight Capital Corp., a now-defunct investment dealer that was headquartered in Burnaby. Bock worked for the firm out of her Vancouver office from 1998 to early 2001.

The exempt investments that she sold to those clients were speculative and illiquid. The businesses underlying the products that Bock recommended to her clients all involved farming.

However, the panel dismissed allegations of misrepresentation against Bock, and with one minor exception, it dismissed allegations against Foresight Capital and Gilbert Wong, who was a director, president, and compliance officer of the firm during the relevant period.

During the hearing, BCSC staff alleged that Foresight and Wong had contravened the suitability rule because of Bock’s conduct, failed to establish and apply written prudent business procedures, failed to designate a compliance officer, and failed to maintain the required working capital, all contrary to the securities rules and the public interest.

A majority of the panel — commissioners Marc Foreman and Robert Milbourne — found that, except for the firm not having met its working capital requirements for four months in 2002, BCSC staff did not prove their allegations against Foresight, and proved no allegations against Wong.

In dissenting findings, commissioner Robin Ford found that BCSC staff had proved these allegations.

The panel directed the parties to make submissions on sanctions according to the schedule set out in the findings.