A FINRA panel awarded Brooke Pilant $200,000 and ordered her U5 record cleared after she accused Ameriprise of defaming her for raising ethical concerns. The rare dual remedy signals growing scrutiny of broker U5 filings.
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A FINRA arbitration panel awarded a former Ameriprise advisor $200,000 and ordered her official record cleared after she accused the firm of defaming her in a regulatory filing. The decision marks an unusually strong remedy in a dispute over what gets written on a broker's U5 termination notice.
Brooke Pilant, who worked at Ameriprise from 2017 to 2024, filed a complaint last year alleging defamation, intentional misrepresentation, tortious interference and breach of a settlement agreement. According to the panel's award, Pilant said she had raised "concerns about unethical practices within Ameriprise" and that the firm retaliated by undermining her credibility. Her lawyer, Victor Hayslip of Burr & Forman, said the defamation centered on language Ameriprise used in the Form U5 it filed with FINRA explaining why she was let go.
"We think this is a testament to the fact that Brooke's fears about what was transpiring at Ameriprise actually did happen," Hayslip said. "We're glad that this is over, and it should have never gotten this far."
Ameriprise Financial (AMP) said in a statement that it disagrees with certain aspects of the panel's decision. The firm also noted that Pilant was an employee of an independent financial advisor, not of Ameriprise directly. "Ameriprise remains committed to fostering a culture of integrity, professionalism and respect," the company said. "We also take our regulatory reporting responsibilities seriously."
The panel awarded Pilant $120,000 in compensatory damages, $80,000 for emotional distress and $500 to cover her filing fee. It also ordered that Ameriprise's reasons for her termination be expunged from her FINRA records. "The Panel orders expungement based on the defamatory nature of the information," the decision read.
Douglas Schulz, president of Invest Securities Consulting, said it is rare for an arbitration panel to grant both monetary compensation and expungement. "The panel obviously thought there was something fairly serious that they did put on her U5," Schulz said. "She got money and they ordered them to fix the U5. That's as good as you can ask for."
Expungement is supposed to be an "extraordinary remedy" reserved for cases where allegations are "factually impossible, clearly erroneous or false." FINRA tightened its expungement rules in 2023 after complaints that panels were granting relief too freely. The number of expungements granted by arbitration panels has climbed since the rule change.
The panel ordered that Pilant's record be revised to show her departure as "voluntary" and that Ameriprise's explanation be "deleted in its entirety." Ameriprise must also withdraw or expunge a filing it made with the Kentucky Department of Insurance describing the reasons for her firing.
Ameriprise and the three employees named in Pilant's complaint had invoked Tennessee's Anti-SLAPP Act, arguing they were merely "filing government-mandated forms disclosing required facts about a registered representative." The panel rejected that defense.
Pilant now works at Dynasty Wealth Solutions in Bartlett, Tennessee, and is registered with Cambridge Investment Research. Two of the former Ameriprise employees named in the case have left the firm. George Varones, a former franchise field vice president in Nashville, joined Wells Fargo last year. Jennifer Schuster remains an Ameriprise advisor in Arkansas.
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