Puffing Professional Credentials Is Not Cool in Houston or anywhere

On January 3, 2009 I posted Truth In Structured Settlement Advertising, SSP is Not a Professional Designation, after discovering that a veteran member of the profession was holding a trade association that he/she was not on record as being a member of as a professional designation on a company website.

Two and one half months later Michelle Pardue of Settlement Professionals, Inc. Houston, Texas office, is still listed on the Settlement Professionals website as Michelle Pardue, CSSC SSP. She also continues to list herself as a member of the Society of Settlement Planners and displays the logo under her profile. THEN Download Pardue bio Settlement Professionals In.. NOW Download Pardue bio Settlement Professionals In.. 3-23-2009

1. As of March 23, 2009, Ms Pardue is not listed as a member of the Society of Settlement Planners   Download Pardue look up Ssp

2. As of March 23, 2009 SSP IS NOT a professional designation, accredited or otherwise. That Ms. Pardue apparently uses it as such is preposterous.

3. The principal of Settlement Professionals Inc. was informed of this in the last 30 days and has apparently done nothing about it.

At a time when there is increased scrutiny of financial professionals, particularly abuse of professional credentials, what could be the reason that Ms. Pardue would hold herself out in such manner?

Is this how a settlement professional is supposed to hold themselves out? If the principal of her firm does nothing; if the trade association to whom she purports to be a member (but apparently isn't) does not care about who is using its logo and its name, and the National Structured Settlement Trade Association, of which Pardue is a member does not enforce Principle VI of its published Code of Ethics then what of the integrity and standards of the structured settlement profession and these entities?