Fidelity’s Promises on Trial After Donated Stock Value Drop

Monday marks the start of a virtual trial to determine whether a Fidelity vehicle for charitable giving negligently lost millions in donations and taxes for a wealthy couple by liquidating their donated stock too quickly.

The case was brought by Emily and Malcolm Fairbairn, a couple that decided to donate about $100 million, mostly in the form of stock from Energous Corp., a publicly-traded company. Their lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, claims that misconduct by Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund reduced their donation by about $9.6 million and cost them about $3.3 ...