Advisor Sues Hightower, Alleging Age Discrimination and Unfair Treatment

Posted on August 30th, 2024 at 9:01 AM
Advisor Sues Hightower, Alleging Age Discrimination and Unfair Treatment

From the desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law

A Massachusetts-based financial advisor, Glenn Frank has filed a lawsuit against Hightower Holdings and Lexington Wealth Management, alleging age discrimination and unfair treatment. According to WealthManagement, Frank claims Hightower, which acquired Lexington in 2019, has progressively marginalized him due to his age.

According to the complaint, Frank, who is 69, asserts that Hightower has systematically pushed him out of client-facing roles to favor younger advisors. Frank alleges that after Hightower’s acquisition, his responsibilities and roles were diminished, including being removed from the Investment Committee and having his client accounts reassigned without his knowledge. Frank contends that the firm’s leadership clearly preferred younger advisors to take over leadership roles to drive firm growth.

WealthManagement also reports that Frank alleges that Hightower misrepresented his availability to clients, reduced his compensation, and imposed further restrictions on his client interactions. Despite filing an internal complaint with Hightower’s Human Resources Department and notifying the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination of his intent to file a formal complaint, Frank claims the firm retaliated by suspending him, citing an email he sent to clients.

Frank's lawsuit seeks an injunction to prevent Hightower from enforcing non-solicitation and restrictive covenants, which he argues unfairly limit his ability to work with his long-standing clients. He remains employed at Lexington.

According to WealthManagement, Hightower has not commented on the ongoing litigation.

 

Eccleston Law LLC represents investors and financial advisors nationwide in securities, employment, transition, regulatory, and disciplinary matters.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

We just wanted to say thanks for your work in helping us get back some of the money we lost. We are not by any means rich, but we have saved some money and we have done so through a tight-fisted approach to most everything we do. So losing a significant chunk of money hurt…especially at a time when everyone else was growing their accounts. We really appreciate the work you did.

Allan and Adele

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

July 16, 2025
Former CFA Institute Executive Charged in $5 Million Embezzlement Scheme

Michael J. Collins, the former chief marketing officer of the CFA Institute, has been accused of embezzling nearly $5 million from the financial education organization through a long-running fraud scheme designed to fund a lavish personal lifestyle.

July 15, 2025
Former Advisor Sues Prime Capital Again Over Unpaid Equity Redemption

A former San Diego-based advisor has filed a second lawsuit against Prime Capital Financial, alleging breach of contract after the firm failed to honor agreed-upon terms related to his equity buyout.

July 14, 2025
Wisconsin Man Charged in $15.8 Million Ponzi Scheme Disguised as Investment Advisory Business

Federal authorities have charged a Wisconsin man with orchestrating a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 120 investors over six years.