A Massachusetts-based advisor who is suing Hightower for age discrimination won a small victory last month, with a state court prohibiting the firm from enforcing non-solicitation covenants against him, temporarily.
In the decision, Judge Debra Squires-Lee ruled in favor of Glenn Frank, a 69-year-old advisor who was folded into Hightower after it bought Lexington Wealth Management in 2019.
Frank alleged his superiors at Hightower had worked to “compel” his retirement. In the decision, Judge Squires-Lee said the potential harm to Frank’s career could be “particularly egregious” if the covenants continued to be enforced.
“The harm to Frank from being unable to communicate with his long-time clients or solicit or work with other customers with whom he never worked or communicated with during his time at LWM far outweighs any harm to Hightower from ordinary competition,” the order read.
A Hightower spokesperson said the firm does not comment on pending litigation.
Frank sued Hightower and LWM last month, seeking a temporary injunction so he could consider moving to new employment while bringing his clients with him. According to Frank’s complaint, Hightower tried phasing Frank out of working with his clients to benefit younger advisors at the firm, saying it was essential to its long-term health.
Frank joined LWM from Wells Fargo in 2010, bringing about 50 clients with him; many of those clients stayed on board when Hightower acquired LWM, not caring about the namesake firm “as long as Glenn is behind it,” according to the original complaint.
In 2016, he cut his hours while keeping his title and responsibilities, but Frank claimed LWM began changing his role to “member emeritus” without consulting him. Soon Frank lost the chance to have the final say about his client accounts.
According to Frank’s complaint, this pressure continued once Hightower bought the firm.
In 2021, supervisors removed Frank from the firm’s Investment Committee without telling him or his clients, and he was told that if he “did not take a role subordinate to that of the younger advisors, he would be removed from his clients’ service teams completely.”
Frank even alleged Hightower falsely told clients he was unavailable or vacationing and moved to cut his pay and hours, telling Frank it would be up to “younger advisors” when and how he could interact with clients. He filed a complaint with Hightower’s HR department alleging age discrimination, but Frank claimed it went nowhere.
The same day, Frank informed Hightower that he planned to file a complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, and the firm suspended him, purportedly because of an email he had sent to clients.
The suspension has since ended, but as of now, Frank remains at Hightower. According to his complaint, he is unable to bring his existing clients with him if he leaves due to the non-solicitation agreement.
In her decision, Squires-Lee said the public would also benefit from allowing Frank’s long-time customers to go with him.
“Some may depart Hightower / LWM to work with Frank. Some may not,” she wrote. “The choice, especially given the length of their relationship with Frank, should be theirs to make.”