A Tarrytown financial adviser is asking a court to confirm an arbitration ruling that found that he did not mishandle a customer’s 401K investments.
Paul J. Tramontozzi, of Rye, petitioned Westchester Supreme Court on May 1 to endorse a ruling by FINRA – the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority – that a customer made a false complaint against him.
“It appears that [Tramontozzi] acted in a professional manner,” three FINRA arbitrators concluded on April 14, “and he provided customer with all necessary documentation for customer to make an informed decision.”
Tramontozzi has been registered as a financial advisor since 2003 and works for Stratos Wealth Partners and LPL Financial in Tarrytown.
The dispute concerns a North Salem man’s $291,000 retirement account. In 2023, Stratos investigated an allegation that an unauthorized investment had been made in the account, according to FINRA records, and concluded that Tramontozzi had done nothing wrong.
Nevertheless, under FINRA rules, customer disputes are disclosed on the financial adviser’s permanent record, even if withdrawn, dismissed or denied. And  FINRA encourages investors to use its BrokerCheck service to look up financial advisers.
In 2024, Tramontozzi petitioned Westchester Supreme Court to order FINRA to expunge his BrokerCheck report. The mere mention of a dispute, he argued, implies professional misconduct and misleads the public.
He withdrew the petition in January 2025 and submitted the matter to FINRA last year for arbitration.
The arbitrators met this past March 3, took testimony from Tramontozzi and reviewed documents. They concluded that details of the dispute on BrokerCheck should be expunged.
But under FINRA rules, a BrokerCheck record may not be expunged until a court confirms the arbitration ruling. So Tramontozzi is asking Westchester Supreme Court to endorse the FINRA ruling.
The North Salem investor chose not to participate in the arbitration, and he declined to comment on the proceedings during a brief telephone discussion for this story.
“It’s in the past,” he said. “I’m looking forward.”
