Legal Question in Investment Law in California

Re: withdrawal of a private investment

Investment? Sounds like you made an unsecured loan of indefinite duration for a vague purpose to an untrustworthy stranger. What do you suppose the borrower is doing with your money? Using it to advertise his "investment" to the next "investor" so he can dribble out payments to you? Re-investing at the tables in Vegas?

As to your four questions:

(1) If the investment were legitimate, your rights would be set forth in the prospectus or other disclosure document and the investment contract. Since you probably weren't furnished anything of this sort, your rights are probably those accorded to victims of securities or investment fraud; they are pretty extensive and usually provide for restitution as well as punishment of the perpetrator.

2. In a legitimate investment deal with proper registration (or exemption from registration), you usually don't have the right to make what you call a "premature" withdrawal, but that would all be set out in black and white in the disclosure documents and/or investment contract. If however you have "invested" in a fraudulent and/or unregistered investment scheme, the person who took your money has no right to keep any part of it, but you may have to sue or make a police report to begin the process of (with luck) getting some or all of it back.

3. Your options include a demand letter, a suit, and/or trying to initiate prosecution. See a lawyer and/or contact the district attorney and/or local police white-collar crimes unit.

4. You haven't provided enough details for me to conclude with certainty that the "investment" you made was solicited, accepted or managed illegally, but from the sound of it, I'm about 99% certain this is an illegal Ponzi scheme or another form of fraudulent investment. Lately I have seen these being promoted at seminars, including shipboard cruise "investment" seminars and at talks on saving on taxes, easy retirement income, offshore opportunities in gold, oil, what-have-you.