In a terse press release, Jesup & Lamont announced that it is reducing its staff to a minimum. Jesup stated that it is terminating “all non-essential personnel.”

One can only hope that the firm’s general counsel, Todd Zuckerbrod, is shown the door. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that his treatment of FINRA put the firm in regulator’s crosshairs. And with the pending motion to confirm/cross-motion to vacate of the Devore decision, things will probably get worse. Devore is the case that Jesup actually won on liability but was sanctioned $60,000 for discovery violations.

And word on the street is that Jesup lost its big case with the former clearing firm for Empire Financial, Penson, and was ordered to pay Penson’s legal fees. I’m still waiting to see that award.

Mr. Zuckerbrod is not the only person to blame. The executives at Jesup allowed him to conduct himself in this manner. They ratified his boorish behavior, as described in the press, and kept him in place. In doing so, they encouraged him to act in a manner that appears to have resulted in a fight with FINRA that, ultimately, led to the firm’s near-death experience. Congratulations, boys, you managed to sully the name of an institution that survived any number of market crashes, economic downturns and the like.

But you just couldn’t survive your own bad behavior.

That’s the view of one Lawyer from Jupiter, Palm Beach County, Florida. I’m Marc Dobin.