CONCURRING STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONERS ORSON SWINDLE AND THOMAS B. LEARY in Wade Cook Financial Corporation, et al.,

File No. 992-3104

The Commission has filed a settlement agreement to resolve complaint allegations that Wade Cook Financial Corporation and Wade Cook Seminars, Inc. (collectively "WCFC") made deceptive claims about how much consumers could earn using stock trading techniques taught at WCFC's seminars. The consent order imposes restrictions on WCFC's future conduct and mandates a redress program for tens of thousands of consumers who together paid millions of dollars to attend WCFC's seminars. This tough relief against WCFC is warranted based on the allegations of deception in the complaint and the magnitude of the likely injury from the alleged deception.

Nevertheless, we believe that the Commission should have gone further and named Wade Cook, the majority owner and CEO of WCFC, as an individual defendant. Mr. Cook is the well-known author of two New York Times best-selling books on stock trading, "Wall Street Money Machine"and "Stock Market Miracles." WCFC touted Mr. Cook's purported success in amassing extraordinary wealth through stock trading in order to persuade consumers to pay between $3,000 and $5,000 each for seminars on Mr. Cook's trading techniques. Although there was an ample legal and factual basis for naming Mr. Cook, the Commission has not alleged that he violated the law.

Mr. Cook should have been named in the complaint; he is WCFC. Mr. Cook and his personal reputation are at the core of the deception pleaded here. If the Commission had named Mr. Cook, he could not disclaim responsibility for conduct that likely caused millions of dollars in injury to consumers -- an important sanction because his reputation is likely to be pivotal in his future book sales and other business ventures. As it is, however, he can in the future truthfully represent that the Commission never alleged that he did anything illegal in connection with WCFC.

Although Mr. Cook is not named, the consent order does impose some restrictions on him, including a requirement that he guarantee WCFC's redress payments. These requirements may limit Mr. Cook's ability to entirely distance himself from WCFC's alleged illegal conduct. Nevertheless, potential consumers of Mr. Cook's products and services would be better served if they had more information about his role in the deceptive conduct pleaded here.