The most common type of securities controversy that comes to arbitration under the National Association of Securities Dealers is breach of fiduciary duty. Common stocks are the most common type of security in NASD arbitrations. The total amount arbitrators awarded in customer claims last year was $139 million, of which $23 million was in punitive damages. These and other dispute resolution statistics have recently been updated by NASD Dispute Resolution, the largest dispute resolution forum in the securities industry (and one for which I serve as a member of the arbitration panel).

Photo of Bob Ambrogi Bob Ambrogi

Bob is a lawyer, veteran legal journalist, and award-winning blogger and podcaster. In 2011, he was named to the inaugural Fastcase 50, honoring “the law’s smartest, most courageous innovators, techies, visionaries and leaders.” Earlier in his career, he was editor-in-chief of several legal publications, including The National Law Journal, and editorial director of ALM’s Litigation Services Division.