Administered by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or FINRA, a brokerage industry self-regulating agency, the securities arbitration process provides a forum through which aggrieved consumers can have their cases heard by a neutral arbitrator, who will decide if their claim prevails. Ewusiak says legitimate securities claims usually fall into one of these categories -- unsuitable investments, misrepresented investments, excessive trading, negligence and flat-out fraud.

Most claims involve investments such as mutual funds, stocks and annuities, he says. If you do believe your claim is legitimate, follow this step-by-step process to file for securities arbitration:. First, you file the claim yourself or find a lawyer to do it for you.

Securities Fraud & Protection Resource Center

You can file a claim on your own at the FINRA site or hire an attorney who will receive a percentage of any financial award from the arbitration, says Tepper. Look for an attorney who has handled these cases before, who has an established track record of successfully handling these cases and who can tell you whether you have a valid claim, Tepper says. A lawyer should also be able to estimate the potential value of your claim, he says.

Whether you file or an attorney does it, FINRA breaks down claims into two types. If there's a clear case of negligence and the claim is small, a consumer might consider representing himself or herself in arbitration.

But remember, the brokerage will always be represented by a securities attorney. While most attorneys will take 33 percent to 40 percent of any award you receive, you still have to come up with some money upfront. In those instances, certain statutes exist that permit the consumer to recover attorneys fees from the brokerage firm if the consumer prevails. Bankrate wants to hear from you and encourages thoughtful and constructive comments. We ask that you stay focused on the story topic, respect other people's opinions, and avoid profanity, offensive statements, illegal contents and advertisement posts.

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