Plaintiffs looking to sue insurance salesmen and financial advisers must be able to show they ceded decision-making control to the defendants before they can pursue claims for breach of fiduciary duty, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled.
Divided 4-2, with one justice not participating, the high court reversed a decision from the Superior Court that had allowed the case, Yenchi v. Ameriprise Financial, to proceed on breach of fiduciary duty claims. The plaintiffs, Eugene and Ruth Yenchi, had sued their financial adviser, Bryan Holland, over an underfunded life insurance policy he sold them in 1996.
