Judge Vacates Arbitration Award, Condemning Wells Fargo, Attorney and FINRA

Posted on February 8th, 2022 at 2:42 PM
Judge Vacates Arbitration Award, Condemning Wells Fargo, Attorney and FINRA

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law: 

A Georgia Superior Court judge has vacated an arbitration award that Wells Fargo had obtained nearly 3 years ago involving a client who sued the firm for mismanaging his account and, in doing so, has rocked the industry with sweeping, serious allegations of misconduct and conspiracy. 

Along with dismissing the July 2019 decision in which Wells Fargo had prevailed, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Belinda Edwards criticized the process of arbitration selection by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) when it came to one lawyer representing Wells Fargo, Terry Weiss. 

Any alteration to the selection process would violate industry rules and deviate from the decades-old protocol that requires a computer-generated list to select neutral panelists. Judge Edward scrutinized the FINRA arbitration system and its potential to employ impartial arbitrator panels, who ultimately determine whether the broker-dealer or investor should prevail. 

Specifically, Brian Leggett filed a FINRA arbitration claim against Wells Fargo alleging that the firm failed to sufficiently monitor and supervise two advisors who mismanaged his account.  Leggett lost his claim in 2019 as three FINRA arbitrators denied the allegations against Wells Fargo. An appeal followed. After reversing Wells Fargo’s victory, Judge Edwards scrutinized FINRA, Wells Fargo and its attorney Terry Weiss for permitting manipulation of the choice of arbitrators that ultimately would favor the brokerage firm over the client. According to the court order, FINRA permitted Weiss to alter FINRA’s “neutral list” of arbitrators in the Leggett case, which unfairly tipped the scale of justice. 

The industry is in an uproar. Significant ethical, regulatory, civil and perhaps even criminal issues face Weiss, Wells Fargo and those individuals at FINRA who negligently or knowingly participated in this scheme. 

Eccleston Law LLC represents investors and financial advisors nationwide in securities, employment, regulatory and disciplinary matters.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, arbitration, wells fargo, finra

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

Thank You from the bottom of our hearts for all you have done for us. When we realized this was a very bad investment - we did not know where to turn for help. Then we received your name. When we called you - you were so kind to us and then agreed to help us. For this we are so very grateful. The world would be a much nicer place if there were more people like the two of you in it. We will always remember all the help and kindness you have shown us. Thank you so very very much for everything.

Wayne and Judy S.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

September 5, 2025
Merrill Lynch Advisor Faces FINRA Disciplinary Action for Refusing to Cooperate with Investigation

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has initiated disciplinary proceedings against former Merrill Lynch broker Ali F. Chehab of Portland, Oregon. According to ThinkAdvisor, FINRA alleges that he refused to cooperate in an investigation into potential misconduct, including unauthorized trading and material misrepresentati...

September 4, 2025
Wells Fargo Ties $2,000 Bonus to Non-Solicitation Clause, Raising Advisor Concerns

Wells Fargo & Co. recently issued a $2,000 bank-wide award to its 215,000 employees, following the Federal Reserve’s June decision to lift its asset growth restrictions.

September 3, 2025
Kansas City Advisory Firms Agree to $25.5 Million Settlement Over No-Poach Allegations

Mariner Wealth Advisors, along with two other Kansas City-area firms, has agreed to a $25.5 million class action settlement over allegations that they illegally agreed not to solicit each other’s advisors.