Lecturer Bios
James S. Wrona, Esq.
James S. Wrona is Vice President and Associate General Counsel for FINRA in Washington, DC. In this role, he is responsible for various policy initiatives, rule changes and litigation regarding the securities industry. Mr. Wrona formerly was associated with the law firm of K&L Gates LLP, where his practice focused on complex federal litigation. He also previously served as a federal law clerk for the Honorable A. Andrew Hauk of the United States District Court for the Central District of California (Los Angeles).
Mr. Wrona is a frequent speaker at securities and litigation conferences and author of numerous law review articles, including The Best of Both Worlds: A Fact-Based Analysis of the Legal Obligations of Investment Advisers and Broker-Dealers and a Framework for Enhanced Investor Protection, 68 Bus. Law. 1 (Nov. 2012); The Securities Industry and the Internet: A Suitable Match 2001 Colum. Bus. L. Rev. 601 (2001).
Nicole McCafferty Esq.
Nicole McCafferty is the Vice President in Member Supervision’s Examination Program, overseeing firms within the Retail firm grouping. In this role, she is responsible for establishing the strategic goals and objectives for the Retail examination program, working to ensure that relevant risks and industry developments are adequately considered and addressed. In her prior role at FINRA, Ms. McCafferty was the Strategic Advisor for the National Cause and Financial Crimes Detection Programs where she provided critical leadership and strategic support to the Executive Vice President.
Ms. McCafferty also held positions as an Examination Director, Examination Manager and Examiner during her tenure at FINRA. Her prior roles within the examination program have included both managing and conducting examinations, primarily focusing on business conduct with retail investors. Ms. McCafferty began her career at the NYSE as a Sales Practice Examiner in 2005 (merging into FINRA in 2007), joined Morgan Stanley’s Internal Audit Department in 2009 and then rejoined FINRA in late 2012. She received her B.S. in Finance and Management from Manhattan College.
Wendy Lanton
Wendy Lanton has been working in the financial services industry for more than 20 years. She is one of the founding principals of Lantern Investments, a FINRA registered broker dealer, and Lantern Wealth Advisors, an SEC registered investment advisor. She has been the Chief Compliance Officer of Lantern Investments since its inception in 1993. The firm has multiple business lines and currently has 44 registered representatives and operates 13 branch offices across the country. Ms. Lanton is responsible for both the firm’s compliance and the day to day operations. In December 2015 she was appointed to the FINRA Small Firm Advisory Board. She also currently serves on the Steering Committee for her firm’s current clearing firm and was the co-chairperson on the steering committee at her previous clearing firm. As a steering committee member, her industry experience is called upon to help direct both compliance and technology resources.
Ms. Lanton has also served as the chairperson for multiple Compliance Forums for retail brokerage firms. As a speaker/panelist at the FINRA 2014 Annual Conference her industry experience was called upon to discuss Anti-Money Laundering and Effective Risk-Based Examinations for small firms. She was also a speaker/panelist at the FINRA 2016 Annual Conference discussing Top Regulatory Concerns. In February 2016 Ms. Lanton served as a panelist representing small firms at the Cybersecurity Conference. She has written numerous compliance-centric articles focusing on topics ranging from client suitability to cyber-security.
Ms. Lanton graduated from George Washington University where she majored in International Finance. Prior to becoming a founding member of Lantern Investments, she worked for a regional bank where she managed assets for high net worth individuals and medium sized businesses.
Julie Glynn
Julie Glynn joined JP Morgan Chase in 2011 and is currently the General Counsel of Chase Wealth Management. She previously worked in the Government Investigation and Regulatory Enforcement Group and as Deputy Chief Legal Officer for JP Morgan Securities, LLC and JP Morgan Clearing Corporation. Prior to working at JP Morgan Chase she worked for FINRA Enforcement, Morgan Stanley and Morrison & Foerster.