Posts in Arbitration.

On June 29, 2022, FINRA released the report of its independent investigation, concluding that allegations of a “secret agreement” to avoid certain arbitrators on an industry lawyer’s cases were untrue.

The allegations were the basis for a Georgia state court’s January 2022, vacatur of an award in favor of a large bank’s brokerage unit. The ruling is pending appeal.  Based on the Georgia court’s finding that the Respondents had “manipulated the arbitration process,” FINRA’s Audit Committee commissioned an independent review. The review was led by a Lowenstein ...

Posted in: Arbitration, FINRA

The Tennessee Court of Appeals has held that new arguments for vacatur or modification first raised over 90-days post-award do not relate back and may not be considered under the State’s version of the Uniform Arbitration Act.

The Court held that an amended pleading seeking to vacate an arbitration award delivered over 90 days earlier does not relate back to the original pleading date (within the 90 days) under Tenn. R. Civ. P. 15.03.

The 90-day limitations period within which to move to vacate under Tennessee’s Uniform Arbitration Act, Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-5-301 et seq., is ...

Posted in: Arbitration

FINRA has proposed a new $100 per-arbitrator fee and a $100 per-arbitrator honorarium for the late cancellation or continuation of prehearing conferences in FINRA arbitrations. The proposed rule change would affect both customer cases and industry cases, and FINRA is seeking to amend FINRA Rules 12214(a), 12500, 12501, 13214(a), 13500, and 13501. In essence, if one or more of the arbitrating parties cancels or obtains a continuance of a prehearing conference within three business days of the scheduled hearing (for example, an Initial Prehearing Conference or "IPHC"), the ...

Posted in: Arbitration, FINRA

The Sixth Circuit recently affirmed that failure-to-supervise claims against a brokerage firm over outside business activities it knew nothing about nevertheless were arbitrable under FINRA Rule 12200(2) as "arising in connection with the business activities of the member" firm.

The firm's representative worked together with an outside financial advisor and others to divert a firm customer's assets from an outside bank account to a fraudulent outside business activity. The customers' funds transferred into the brokerage account, out to a bank account and from there to the ...

The Tennessee Supreme Court recently held that Tennessee's Trust Code and broad trust-instruments authorize a Trustee's execution of a pre-dispute arbitration clause. That isn't a per se breach of fiduciary duty, but the Court left that door slightly ajar. Moreover, a third-party relying on it will have to litigate whether it binds a non-signatory beneficiary.

The Guardian of tragically injured minor child sued the Trustees and financial advisors (and their firms) for breach of fiduciary and other duties in depletion of the child's personal-injury-proceeds Trust. The ...

Posted in: Arbitration

Effective April 3, 2017, all FINRA arbitration participants (except pro se parties) must use FINRA's web-based DR-Portal to file and serve documents in both customer and industry arbitrations.

Pro se parties may elect to use the Portal or opt-out, using traditional filing and service methods instead.

Exceptions to Portal service include most items involving new or non-parties, documents produced and permanent injunction claims:

  • pro se customers who do not elect to use the Party Portal;
  • documents produced in response to discovery requests or pursuant to the Discovery Guide;
Posted in: Arbitration, FINRA

Within weeks, the Second and Third Circuits reached opposite conclusions over federal jurisdiction to confirm, modify or vacate arbitration awards. The Second Circuit now allows courts to look through the face of the petition to assess the federal-question jurisdictional merit of the underlying dispute; the Third Circuit doesn't (along with the DC and Seventh Circuits).

In 2009, the Supreme Court held the text of Section 4 of the Federal Arbitration Act required "look-through" assessment of the underlying dispute in motions to compel arbitration, based on the statute's text:

"A ...

In a July 22 Notice, FINRA took umbrage at a growing line of Court decisions suggesting that a later or more-specific forum selection clause in an agreement between the parties may override a prior customer arbitration agreement. FINRA defended it arbitral forum, pointing out that members are subject to discipline for restricting a customer's right (or even request) to arbitrate.

An expanding line of precedent holds that a later forum-selection provision (limiting disputes to a particular court) may supersede a prior arbitration provision between the same two parties. See, e.g ...

Posted in: Arbitration, FINRA

FINRA reported that, for 2015, Claimants won about half of private securities arbitrations: 47% for all-public panel decisions; 45% for majority-public panels. A colleague and securities mediator, Dana Pescosolido, recently studied FINRA's 2015 private securities arbitrations to see just what the results are when Claimants "win." The study can illuminate mediation (and other risk-assessment) expectations. FINRA Securities Arbitrations Of the 3,435 securities arbitrations filed in 2015, 2,341 (68%) were customer cases and 1,094 (32%) were intra-industry disputes ...

Posted in: Arbitration, FINRA

FINRA's Dispute Resolution Task Force issued its Final Report in mid-December. The Report reflects the group's consideration of wide-ranging issues affecting the nation's principle dispute-resolution forum for broker-dealers, their associated persons and customers. The Task Force made 51 recommendations for changes to FINRA Arbitrations, including: Improve Arbitrator Quality by:

  • Increasing compensation;
  • Improving recruitment for depth and diversity;
  • Improving selection to provide a pool of 30 in all-public arbitrator cases; achieve earlier and better conflict ...
Posted in: Arbitration, FINRA

The Supreme Court Monday re-affirmed the enforceability of class-waivers in arbitration agreements. The five-justice majority felt the need to rebuke the California courts for trying to end-run Federal preemption through a latent "States-rights" nullification approach. Two of the three dissenters saw the case as a consumerist crusade against big business. But the biggest take away for businesses using arbitration clauses just might lie hidden within the opinion. DirectTV's Conditional Class-Waiver. DirectTV's consumer contracts contained a conditional class waiver ...

Unless you live under a rock, you've heard about "Deflategate:" The Patriots' use of allegedly under-inflated footballs during their 45-7 win over the Colts in last-year's AFC Championship. In a 40-page opinion issued September 3, Southern District of New York federal Judge Richard Berman overturned the NFL's four-game suspension of Patriot quarterback, Tom Brady. Commissioner Goodell said the League will appeal. Deflategate also proves that it's not impossible to overturn an adverse arbitration award under Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA"). Cross-Motions on an ...

Posted in: Arbitration
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