JPMorgan Chase & Co. and a bank-based advisor who joined LPL have reached a truce within the first stage of a battle over shopper solicitation.
Alan C. Feutz, who is predicated in Deerfield, Illinois, and moved in June, agreed to abide by the phrases of his non-solicitation agreements barring him from encouraging clients to maneuver belongings to LPL, in accordance with a stipulated settlement reached on Thursday. In return, JPMorgan clarified that nothing blocks Feutz, who LPL stated managed $725 million, from processing in-bound accou nt switch requests or doing enterprise with those that have already moved their accounts.
The financial institution agreed that the court docket “want take no motion” on its request for a brief restraining order, and either side waived their proper to a preliminary injunction listening to.
The settlement is a typical first step that brokers soak up in search of to resolve TRO disputes. By agreeing to an early stipulation, the case can proceed on an expedited foundation in arbitration the place JPMorgan will argue for damages and a everlasting injunction.
Feutz’ lawyer James V. Garvey, who chairs the restrictive covenants group at Vedder, was not accessible to right away return a request for remark. Feutz didn’t admit or deny wrongdoing as a part of the stipulation.
Garvey beforehand stated the financial institution’s “allegations towards Mr. Feutz are unfounded,” and that he’ll defend towards them “vigorously.”
“We’re assured that he’ll prevail after a full vetting of the information earlier than a FINRA Dispute Decision arbitration panel, simply as now we have prevailed on behalf of different shoppers who’ve needed to endure JPMS’ anticompetitive conduct by bringing claims of this sort,” Garvey added.
JPMorgan filed its lawsuit in federal court docket within the Northern District of Illinois on July 15. As in dozens of different instances that the financial institution has filed lately, it alleged that Feutz retained confidential shopper contact info and used it to encourage shoppers to maneuver belongings to LPL in violation of non-solicitation agreements.
The financial institution alleged that he referred to as former shoppers on their private cell telephones and advised at the least one buyer that LPL has “much more funding selections” than JPMorgan, in accordance with the criticism, which was filed by JPMorgan’s broker-dealer, J.P. Morgan Securities.
One other shopper allegedly stated Feutz advised her that her charges would keep the identical if she moved her accounts to him, in accordance with JPMorgan, which additionally claimed that shoppers with at the least $146 million had transferred their accounts to him at LPL.
Feutz began his profession with Dean Witter Reynolds in 1999 and labored at three different corporations earlier than transferring to JPMorgan’s Chase Funding Providers Corp. in 2005, in accordance with BrokerCheck.