This recently occurred in a FINRA arbitration that was partially
remotely held on Zoom.
Due to COVID-19, FINRA has postponed all in-person arbitration
and mediation hearings through July 31, 2020, and is offering
remote hearing services using Zoom and teleconference. The parties
can jointly request a virtual hearing option or the panel may order
the parties to proceed using a virtual hearing option.
Parties considering a remote hearing should consider the
pitfalls of such hearings―particularly that they may be an
inadequate substitute for an in-person hearing or that they will
provide another ground on which decisions may be challenged.
This recently occurred in a FINRA arbitration that was partially
remotely held on Zoom. A month after the panel issued an $11.4
million award in favor of claimants, on May 5, 2020, respondents
filed a petition in federal court to vacate the award, inter
alia, because the panel was inattentive and distracted during
their Zoom
