RBC Wealth Management has been hit with a wrongful termination claim filed by one of its former brokers in Beverly Hills, California, according to an Advisor Hub report.
The plaintiff is Scott D. Burns, who alleges that during 2023, RBC engaged in “conduct designed to force plaintiff into terminating his employment,” though the suit did not go into detail regarding the alleged conduct. In the complaint, which was shifted to federal court in California, Burns claims that he was “wrongfully constructively discharged.”
Burns, now registered with Raymond James & Associates, is seeking at least $2.4 million in damages. That amount includes at least $200,000 in deferred compensation as well as $200,000 in damages stemming from allegations of elder abuse under California law. Burns is over 65 years old.
The plaintiff also asked for a finding that he should not be required to pay back a $2 million recruiting loan bonus that RBC paid him to join the firm 2019 from Morgan Stanley. After Burns departed the firm, RBC went into arbitration in an effort to recoup the bonus and not have to pay the deferred compensation. The case is pending.
Burns also claims that RBC violated state financial laws because the entity that granted the $2 million loan was not registered as a lender under California law.
An RBC spokesperson declined to comment on pending litigation.
The report notes that over the past four decades, Burns has worked for more than a dozen broker-dealers, including Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Bear Stearns, voluntarily resigning from the latter in 2007. His BrokerCheck record states that prior to his departure, Bear Stearns questioned the level of trading in certain accounts serviced by him.
Hyman Cotter PC routinely represents financial advisors and other registered representatives who were wrongfully terminated by their firm. Our attorneys take a thoughtful approach to clients’ cases by first trying to work with the terminating firm concerning the Form U5 disclosure. When necessary, our attorneys are prepared to file wrongful termination and defamation claims. We are prepared to assist when the circumstances surrounding your termination are wrongful. Contact Hyman Cotter PC at 312-291-4600 or through our online contact form for a free consultation.
