Financial Advisor Exonerated in FINRA Arbitration

Received a defense decision in a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) binding arbitration proceeding conducted in Pittsburgh. ​The 78-year-old investor sued her financial advisor for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty, alleging that he failed to properly invest the cash in her IRA account, resulting in a rate of return that was much lower than allegedly promised by the advisor. The claimant sought a return of the advisory fees paid to the firm, the difference between the amount the account actually earned compared to the amount she thought it should have earned, interest, attorney’s fees and punitive damages. After considering the pleadings, testimony and evidence presented at the hearing, the arbitrator denied the investor’s claims in their entirety and entered an award in favor of the financial advisor.