Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP Home
We Fight for Investors Cheated by Wall Street
Contact Us Now 
Our Staff
Our team also includes a number of non-lawyers, including consultants, legal secretaries, paralegals and assistants. Many of them have prior experience in the securities industry and were formerly account managers, registered representatives or registered assistants at major brokerage firms.
This experience gives our team great advantages in understanding what happened in our clients accounts, familiarity with the documents to be used in their cases and expertise assisting our attorneys in working to recover our clients’ losses. If you would like to contact our team, please call (800) 259-9010 or click here .
LEGAL SPECIALIZATION: Some states offer certification to attorneys in various areas of the law. We are not aware of any state that offers any certification in securities arbitration. Our attorneys have extensive knowledge and experience in the brokerage industry, securities regulation and/or securities arbitration.
J. Thomas Ruiz Business Manager Thomas Ruiz joined Shepherd, Smith, Edwards & Kantas, LLP in 2002. Prior to SSEK, Mr. Ruiz worked in the securities industry for 12 years, both as a broker and in compliance, with his last position as Senior Assistant Operations Manager for Smith Barney in the Galleria Financial District where he acquired his Series 28 license for Operations Room management. Mr. Ruiz also proudly served in the United States Navy for 12 years as a Gunner’s Mate and has circumvented the Earth twice during his travels.
Don't Let Investment Advisor or Broker Misconduct Go UnpunishedWe would like to help you, your company or your pension fund reclaim what has been lost. Call Today!
Kristine Kieta Paralegal Kristine Kieta graduated from Texas A&M University with her Bachelor of Arts in Economics. Ms. Kieta worked as an investment broker with OLDE Discount (now H&R Block Financial), Morgan Keegan, and Morgan Stanley for a total of 9 years before joining the Shepherd Smith Edwards, & Kantas, LLP in October 2002. For the majority of the time Kristine has worked for SSEK, she’s diligently analyzed cases and handled discovery for the firm.
Don't Let Investment Advisor or Broker Misconduct Go UnpunishedWe would like to help you, your company or your pension fund reclaim what has been lost. Call Today!
Patty Ayala Legal Secretary Patty Ayala has over 25 years of experience in administrative duties and has been with Shepherd, Smith, Edwards & Kantas, LLP since 2000. Originally from Mexico, Mrs. Ayala studied Accounting and worked in human resources until she moved to the United States in the mid 90’s. Mrs. Ayala has deep experience in client relationships and inventory and compliance and she enjoys working with the Latin-American clients as the liaison for SSEK. Mrs. Ayala provides excellent attention to detail and has effectively organized bilingual litigation cases and necessary correspondence handling.
Don't Let Investment Advisor or Broker Misconduct Go UnpunishedWe would like to help you, your company or your pension fund reclaim what has been lost. Call Today!
Cynthia Verduzco Administrative Assistant Cynthia Verduzco has over 20 years of customer service and administrative experience. She is the first point of contact for many of our clients and is responsible for supporting the business operations of the firm, which includes vendor relationships, inventory management, and legal administrative work. Ms. Verduzco has previously worked in the banking and utilities industries, where she developed and honed her client care and organizational skillsets.
