JPMorgan Advisor Sues Again After Arbitration Panel Denies $10 Million Claim

A former J.P. Morgan Private Bank advisor is making another bid for damages after an arbitration panel cleared his record of an allegedly inaccurate termination filing but denied his claim for $10 million.

Joshua David Sappi Biering filed a lawsuit on Monday in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, alleging discrimination on the basis of sex, national origin and disability as well as retaliation and violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Biering managed around $1 billion in client assets and generated around $5.8 million in annual revenue before his termination.

In December, an arbitration panel had raised concerns about a potential pattern of J.P. Morgan weaponizing brokers' termination records to hinder their moves to competitors after it was found that the bank began investigating reasons to terminate Biering after finding out he was considering leaving and timed its filing 'to hinder Claimant's ability to transfer his book of business to a competitor.'

Biering resigned in October 2023 while preparing to join Merrill Lynch but was then terminated during his 60-day garden leave, with J.P. Morgan claiming on the U5 filing that he had been discharged for 'inappropriate behavior.'