FINRA arbitration award reinstated

An unpublished opinion reversed the vacating of a FINRA arbitration award in Morgan Keegan v. Garrett, No. 11-20736 (Oct. 23, 2012).  The Court reversed a finding of fraudulent testimony “because the grounds for [the alleged] fraud were discoverable by due diligence before or during the . . . arbitration.”  Id. at 8.  The Court also deferred to the panel’s conclusions about the scope of the arbitration as consistent with the authority given by the FINRA rules.  Id. at 10-12.  Throughout, the opinion summarizes Circuit authority about the appropriate level of deference to the panel in a confirmation seting.