A former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. managing director failed to convince a court to revive his claim that he was illegally fired for blowing the whistle on compliance lapses at the bank.
Christopher Rollins sued Goldman in 2018, but the case was sent to arbitration. A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority panel dismissed his claims last year, and a federal judge in New York on Thursday rejected Rollins’s attempt to overturn the arbitral decision.
Rollins claimed he was terminated for highlighting the bank’s dealings with controversial German financier Lars Windhorst and its failure to comply with anti-money-laundering laws. According to Rollins, he was made a scapegoat after transactions with Windhorst raised questions, even though the client relationship had been cultivated by more senior Goldman managers.
“I’m disappointed but not surprised,” said Seth Redniss, a lawyer for Rollins. “If Goldman’s managers really believe what’s written in the codes of conduct and ethics, they wouldn’t use secret arbitration to stop the public from learning how they really operate.”
In seeking to vacate the March 2021 arbitral award, which also required him to pay $8,887.50 in fees, Rollins argued to U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos that he had been denied access to evidence, including compliance records showing that Windhorst was on a restricted list.
