Batista v. Robinhood Arbitration Award

The FINRA Arbitration Award in FINRA Case No. 21-01206 can be viewed here: Batista v. Robinhood Arbitration Award

Batista v. Robinhood Financial, LLC and Robinhood Securities, LLC (FINRA Case No. 21-01206)

Award served January 6, 2022. Hearing held December 13, 2021 (hearing site: Hartford, Connecticut) before a sole public arbitrator in the FINRA Dispute Resolution Services forum.

What happened

On January 27, 2021, Jose Batista, a truck driver from Connecticut [AUGUST TO CONFIRM], bought shares of KOSS and EXPR late in the day. On January 28, 2021, Robinhood placed trade restrictions on numerous stocks, including KOSS and EXPR, in the midst of an unprecedented rise in their prices. Mr. Batista alleged that the restrictions caused the share prices to fall and caused him losses.

The claim

Mr. Batista filed a FINRA arbitration claim on May 7, 2021 against Robinhood Financial, LLC, Robinhood Securities, LLC and Robinhood Markets, Inc. The claims included breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and non-disclosure or concealment, all arising from the January 28, 2021 trading restrictions. The case was administered under FINRA’s Special Proceeding option for simplified cases. At the hearing, Mr. Batista requested $39,761.98 in compensatory damages.

The award

The arbitrator found Robinhood Financial, LLC and Robinhood Securities, LLC jointly and severally liable and ordered them to pay Mr. Batista:

$29,460.77 in compensatory damages;
interest on that sum at 10% per annum from January 28, 2021 through December 10, 2021; and
$150.00 to reimburse the non-refundable portion of his FINRA filing fee.

The arbitrator also assessed the hearing session fees, postponement fee, late-cancellation fee and discovery-motion fee to Robinhood Financial, LLC and Robinhood Securities, LLC, jointly and severally. Requests for punitive damages and attorneys’ fees were denied. Because Robinhood Markets, Inc. is not a FINRA member and did not submit to arbitration, the arbitrator made no determination on the claims against it.

Why it matters

To the firm’s knowledge, [AUGUST TO CONFIRM wording] this was the first arbitration award won by a retail investor against Robinhood over its January 28, 2021 decision to restrict trading in certain “meme stocks.”

August M. Iorio represented Mr. Batista in the arbitration. At the time, he was with Iorio Altamirano LLP, the firm the award lists beside his name.

Read the award: FINRA’s copy of the award in Case No. 21-01206 (PDF) or the copy hosted on this site.

Past results are not a guarantee of future outcomes, and the outcome of a particular case cannot be predicated upon a lawyer’s or law firm’s past results.

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August represented my associate and me in the GWG arbitration and accomplished what we thought was impossible. He successfully tracked down the elusive owner of a firm—who had sold the company shortly after our issue arose—and secured a fair settlement for us. Another law firm had already told me...

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August Iorio is a wonderful, very competent attorney. He helped me through a very complicated financial situation to a result that benefitted me greatly. He is responsive, efficient, and very accommodating to my personal situation. I highly recommend him.

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I was impressed with August Iorio's directness and clarity in explaining the claim process and how it might work out. I also appreciated his promptness in getting back to me when I had questions or other concerns. The law firm is very good at what it does.

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August Iorio was the lead on our case. His professional demeanor, partnered with his responsiveness to our questions, suggestions, and ideas made us feel as if we were a team with a common goal. He always kept us updated and informed and gave us realistic expectations which resulted in a timely...

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