Good morning, Memphis! There are plenty of business, government and sporting events to keep your interest this week, along with the annual farm and gin show. And Shakespeare could inspire some Shelby County students to have their works published in a literary magazine.

2. Ex-NBA Player Gets $1.5M in RMK Fund Dispute - Tuesday, September 15, 2009
A retired professional basketball player has won what may be the largest award yet from a financial industry panel hearing claims involving a group of former Regions Morgan Keegan mutual funds.

Four-time NBA champion Horace Grant has won almost $1.5 million in an arbitration claim he filed over his losses in the RMK funds.

In his statement of claim, Grant said he suffered losses of almost $1.5 million in some of Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc.’s “highly speculative proprietary funds, which were not in (his) best interest.” A Morgan Keegan spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

Grant, who retired in 2004, played as a power forward for the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s alongside star players Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. He was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers when he retired.

Grant’s attorney, Chicago securities lawyer Andrew Stoltmann, said Grant had wanted a stable place to park his money so it would provide a steady income for his retirement years. His statement of claim says Grant was familiar with Regions Bank and “trusted the Morgan Keegan name.”

Memphis-based Morgan Keegan is a subsidiary of Alabama-based Regions Financial Corp.

Offense and defense

New York-based Hyperion Brookfield Asset Management last summer took over the troubled RMK funds, several of which lost the majority of their value in a staggering fall beginning in 2007.

“What (Grant) got was a derivative-laced, hedge-fund-like investment that lost 90 percent of its value,” Stoltmann said. “He’s a guy who retired from the NBA and wanted conservative, stable investments so he could live off of that money.”

A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) panel made the decision in Grant’s case. Generally, the FINRA panels don’t explain their decisions.

FINRA panels have announced several big dollar RMK-related awards this year, with some of them going to prominent investors.

Memphis native and baseball broadcaster Tim McCarver was awarded $100,000 in compensatory damages in February stemming from his RMK losses.?A former NFL player for the Kansas City Chiefs, Memphis native Jerome Woods, won $950,000 this year after filing an arbitration claim over his RMK losses.

Referring to a FINRA panel’s decision about Woods’ claim, Morgan Keegan spokeswoman Kathy Ridley said in April: “Overall results support our belief that there were no improprieties in the management of these funds. We plan to continue a vigorous defense of all claims.”

3. Former Tiger, NFL Player Awarded $950K Over RMK Losses - Monday, April 13, 2009

A Memphis native and former professional football player has won the largest award yet from a financial industry panel hearing claims involving a group of former Regions Morgan Keegan mutual funds.

4. Former NFL Player Scores Largest RMK Settlement Yet - Friday, April 10, 2009

A Memphis native and former professional football player has won the largest award yet from a financial industry panel hearing claims involving a group of former Regions Morgan Keegan mutual funds.

Jerome Woods, whose football career included a stint with the Kansas City Chiefs, has won $950,000 as a result of the arbitration claim he filed over losses in the RMK funds. Woods played ten seasons in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs, according to the team’s official Web site www.kcchiefs.com.

Woods’ Nashville attorney Naill Falls told The Daily News his client is pleased with the arbitrators’ ruling.

“Like most investors, the Woods were not interested in speculative risk, but Morgan Keegan recommended these highly risky funds indiscriminately, loading up their clients with these funds without disclosing their true risks,” Falls said.

Woods started his collegiate career at Northeast Mississippi Community College. He was drafted by the Chiefs in the 1996 NFL draft after two seasons with the University of Memphis Tigers.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) made the decision in the Woods case. Generally, the panel does not qualify its decisions.

Earlier this month, Morgan Keegan spokeswoman Kathy Ridley said about the results of the RMK arbitrations: “Overall results support our belief that there were no improprieties in the management of these funds. We plan to continue a vigorous defense of all claims.”

Memphis-based Morgan Keegan is a subsidiary of Alabama-based Regions Financial Corp. New York-based Hyperion Brookfield Asset Management took over the troubled RMK funds from Morgan Keegan last summer.

The firm, which also rebranded the funds under its Helios name, is not a party in any current claims or lawsuits by investors.

Losses in the funds have spawned a wave of securities litigation in addition to the arbitration claims. Among other recent arbitration awards, Memphis native and sports broadcaster Tim McCarver won $100,000 in compensatory damages in February as a result of the claim he filed over his own former RMK investments.

5. Former NFL Player Scores Largest RMK Settlement Yet - Thursday, April 9, 2009

A Memphis native and former professional football player has won the largest award yet from a financial industry panel hearing claims involving a group of former Regions Morgan Keegan mutual funds.

Jerome Woods, whose football career included a stint with the Kansas City Chiefs, has won $950,000 as a result of the arbitration claim he filed over losses in the RMK funds. Woods played ten seasons in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs, according to the team’s official Web site www.kcchiefs.com.

Woods’ Nashville attorney Naill Falls told The Daily News his client is pleased with the arbitrators’ ruling.

“Like most investors, the Woods were not interested in speculative risk, but Morgan Keegan recommended these highly risky funds indiscriminately, loading up their clients with these funds without disclosing their true risks,” Falls said.

Woods started his collegiate career at Northeast Mississippi Community College. He was drafted by the Chiefs in the 1996 NFL draft after two seasons with the University of Memphis Tigers.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) made the decision in the Woods case. Generally, the panel does not qualify its decisions.

Earlier this month, Morgan Keegan spokeswoman Kathy Ridley said about the results of the RMK arbitrations: “Overall results support our belief that there were no improprieties in the management of these funds. We plan to continue a vigorous defense of all claims.”

Memphis-based Morgan Keegan is a subsidiary of Alabama-based Regions Financial Corp. New York-based Hyperion Brookfield Asset Management took over the troubled RMK funds from Morgan Keegan last summer.

The firm, which also rebranded the funds under its Helios name, is not a party in any current claims or lawsuits by investors.

Losses in the funds have spawned a wave of securities litigation in addition to the arbitration claims. Among other recent arbitration awards, Memphis native and sports broadcaster Tim McCarver won $100,000 in compensatory damages in February as a result of the claim he filed over his own former RMK investments.

6. Claim Against Morgan Keegan Yields Largest Award Yet - Friday, April 3, 2009

What’s believed to be the largest single award so far for investors in a group of former Regions Morgan Keegan mutual funds has been announced by a financial industry panel.

Steve and Gary Fitzgerald, two brothers from California, have won $267,711 plus interest. That amount is less than the more than $429,000 in compensatory damages they originally sought – but their Chicago attorney is still pleased with the outcome.

7. Reynolds Named Head Baseball Coach at STCC - Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Alan "Bo" Reynolds has been named the new head baseball coach at Southwest Tennessee Community College. He previously worked at Olive Branch High School, where he was head baseball coach in 2005-2006 after serving as assistant coach from 2003 to 2005. He also coached at Rhodes College from 1990 to 2003, where he was both an assistant coach and head coach and the University of Memphis from 1987 to 1990. There, he was an assistant under head coach Bobby Kilpatrick.

8. Archived Article: Real Review - Tuesday, April 24, 2001
Allen & OHara, Fremont Realty Allen & OHara, Fremont Realty team up for national acquisitions Allen & OHara Inc. has entered into a strategic partnership with Fremont Realty Capital LP to capitalize Education Properties Trust LLC, an acq...

9. Archived Article: Park Commission - Friday, May 10, 1996
5/10 jts park commission Park Commission wants facilities master plan By JAMES SNYDER The Daily News Memphis Park Commission wants to develop a facilities master plan to determine needs and uses of the citys public parks and centers. The commission ...