Federal Judge Reaffirms Injunctions Against Advisors Who Departed USI for Lockton

Posted on May 15th, 2023 at 11:48 AM
Federal Judge Reaffirms Injunctions Against Advisors Who Departed USI for Lockton

From the desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law 

A federal judge has upheld and expanded an injunction against several former USI financial advisors who departed for Lockton.

In February, five former USI advisors were ordered by a U.S. District Court in Tampa, Florida, to adhere to nonsolicitation and nondisclosure provisions included in their employment agreements with USI. The five former USI advisors previously filed suit against USI upon departing the firm to obtain a ruling that certain provisions in their employment agreements were illegal and unenforceable. However, the district court reaffirmed its preliminary injunction and further extended its scope to include two additional former USI employees who also departed for Lockton.

The district court refused to issue a separate injunction against Lockton. The district court determined that the advisors “were plainly predisposed to breach” their employment agreements “rather than being induced to do so by Lockton.” However, the district court noted that “Lockton certainly took advantage of the situation by hiring Simmons and Mitchell to their requested terms, knowing their planned course of conduct would violate prohibitions in their contracts with USI.”

 

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

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

That is just fantastic! Thank you very much!

Julie N.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

September 18, 2025
Easterly ROCMuni Fund Collapse Triggers Investor Lawsuits

The Easterly ROCMuni High Income Municipal Bond Fund (tickers RMHIX, RMHVX, RMJAX) suffered a significant collapse in mid-2025, wiping out hundreds of millions in value and leaving many investors with steep losses.

September 17, 2025
FINRA Suspends Centaurus Dallas Broker Over Excessive Alternative Investment Sales

FINRA has suspended a Centaurus Financial broker, William Burks, for four months after finding he placed as much as 91 percent of a client’s net worth into illiquid alternative investments.

September 16, 2025
Former Morgan Stanley Advisors Win Partial Court Victory in Client Solicitation Dispute

Two former Morgan Stanley advisors in Hackensack, New Jersey have defeated Morgan Stanley’s initial effort to block them from soliciting clients, according to an August 15 order from New Jersey Superior Court.