Schwab Charitable Fund Defeats Donor’s Excessive-Fees Lawsuit

A donor attempting to bring a class action over alleged excessive fees against Charles Schwab & Co. and its charity investment arm, Schwab Charitable Fund, was rebuffed Wednesday by a federal appeals court in California.

Philip Pinkert lacked standing to sue because he relinquished control of the money when he elected to put it in Schwab’s donor-advised fund, the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit said.

The court said Pinkert contracted away his purported rights to control the money when he made his initial investment, as the fund only allows donors to make non-binding recommendations about how ...