The Federal Court has ruled that stockbrokers and wealth advisers are not covered by the finance award, overruling a decision that could have exposed investment firms to millions of dollars in back-pay claims.

Wealth management firm Ord Minnett won its appeal on Wednesday against a Federal Circuit Court ruling that found it failed to pay $231,000 in minimum wages and leave to client adviser Evangelos Theodorou over four years by just paying him in commissions.