Financial Network Investment v. Kayvan Karoon

MEMORANDUM

Kayvan Karoon and Karoon Capital Markets, Inc., (“KCM”) (collectively “Ka-roon”) appeal the district court’s confirmation of a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority arbitration panel (the “panel”) award in favor of Financial Network Investment Corp., ING Advisors Network, Jack Handy, and Albert Johnson (collectively “FNIC”), and its dismissal of Ka-roon’s petition to vacate the award. The panel originally awarded $565,063.83 in favor of FNIC, and $65,000 in favor of Ka-roon. On remand by the district court, the panel offset the two awards for an amend ed award of $500,063.83 in favor of FNIC.

We review the district court’s confirmation of the panel’s award de novo. Bosack v. Soward, 586 F.3d 1096, 1102 (9th Cir.2009). However, our review of the actual award is “both limited and highly deferential,” and “[w]e must affirm an order to confirm an arbitration award unless it can be vacated, modified, or corrected as prescribed by the [Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) Schoenduve Corp. v. Lucent Technologies, Inc., 442 F.3d 727, 730, 731 (9th Cir.2006). A federal court may vacate an award if the arbitrator exceeds his powers in rendering such an award, and “arbitrators…