What Is FINRA Arbitration?
An individual who wishes to pursue recovery for investment losses from their brokerage firm on an individual basis — assuming that no class action has been filed regarding a particular wrongful financial conduct or product, or the investor has chosen not to participate in a filed class action –must pursue his or her claims in binding arbitration sponsored by FINRA. FINRA arbitration is a private forum in which a panel of three arbitrators decides the investor’s case. The investor is represented by his or her own attorney and is able to determine the type of claims to assert and the amount sought in recovery. The investor does not represent any other investors and is directly responsible only for his or her own claims. FINRA arbitrations typically last several days. The investor is allowed to put on witnesses, offer documents into evidence and cross-examine the brokerage firm’s witnesses. The arbitration typically takes place in a hotel conference room in a city nearest to the investo
