A settlement has been reached in a dispute between UBS Wealth Management USA and a group of brokers who left for another firm in October, Advisor Hub reports.
A court document stated that a consent agreement was filed by UBS and the Indianapolis-based team that joined RBC Wealth Management-U.S. Under the terms of the agreement, the 16 ex-brokers will be restrained from soliciting some of the clients they had worked with at UBS.
The dispute began when UBS filed a complaint in federal court accusing the team of violating their non-solicitation agreements when they jumped to RBC. The firm asked for a temporary restraining order barring the group from soliciting their former clients.
The brokers said they had made a “simple announcement” to their clients about their transition to RBC by using publicly available contact information. UBS responded by saying the non-solicitation agreements barred any communications, whether through an announcement or a solicitation, that was intended to get clients to join the brokers at their new firm.
But while the legal battle has been settled, UBS will continue to pursue its claims in arbitration before a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority panel. Before filing its court complaint, the firm had filed a claim with FINRA asking for a permanent injunction and monetary damages.
According to the AdvisorHub report, the team that left for RBC generated $8 million in annual revenue from $1.5 million in client assets when they were with UBS.
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