In Asplund v. Selected Investments in Financial Equities, Inc. (2000) 86 Cal.App.4th 26, the plaintiffs purchased promissory notes issued by Medco, a medical equipment company, from Joseph Tufo, a registered representative of the defendant broker/dealer SIFE (Selected Investments in Financial Equities, Inc.). (Id. at p. 29.) Eventually, the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) enjoined Medco from offering or selling the promissory notes, which were no more than "'an elaborate Ponzi scheme.'" (Ibid.) Investors sued, seeking, on various bases, to impose vicarious liability on SIFE for Tufo's actions, as well as direct liability against SIFE for negligent supervision. (Id. at p. 30.) SIFE moved for summary judgment on the latter claim on the ground that: (1) Tufo was an independent contractor, not an employee; (2) Tufo lacked actual or apparent authority to sell the investment at issue; (3) SIFE had no notice of, and in no way benefitted from, the transaction. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment in favor of SIFE. It held "where, as here, the registered representative is not an employee of the broker-dealer, has no actual or apparent authority to sell the investment at issue, and the broker had no notice of and did not in any way benefit from the transaction, the broker-dealer has no such duty to supervise sales by its registered representatives of such investments." (Id. at p. 29.)