Advisor Hub reports that dozens of former registered representatives with the Personal Financial Management unit of Goldman Sachs have discovered that their Forms U5 contain notices regarding their decision to leave for rivals ahead of the sale of that division to Creative Planning last month.
A Form U5 tracks the employment history of a registered representative and the circumstances surrounding why a representative’s registration with a firm was terminated. Because the data in a Form U5 becomes part of a registered representative’s permanent record in the Central Registration Depository, the Forms U5 Goldman filed may serve as a black mark against the impacted registered representatives’ future employment opportunities.
Goldman alleges that the registered representatives decamped to rival firms before the end of their notice periods, violating their employment contracts. The filings also indicated that the firm would not pay out the terms of the registered representatives’ contracts as they would have had the registered representatives remained in their chairs and served out their garden leaves.
Some of the affected registered representatives have already fought back against Goldman’s filings, and more may follow suit. Two registered representatives in California filed a preemptive suit against Goldman in late September, alleging that its garden-leave policies violated the state’s labor laws. So far, the firm has not responded to their complaint.
If you are one of the registered representatives affected by Goldman Sachs’ Form U5 disclosures, contact Hyman Cotter PC immediately. Our firm has considerable experience representing registered representatives in FINRA arbitrations concerning Form U5 disclosures. Depending on the circumstances, we can help you pursue an expungement and/or a defamation claim against your former employer.
