The curtain has finally dropped on a long-running workplace drama inside America’s wealth-management halls. A cluster of major investment and advisory firms has agreed to hand over $25.5 million to end accusations that they secretly walled off their talent—blocking job moves, chilling competition, and flattening paychecks for thousands who keep the financial engines running.
A filing in a Kansas federal court reveals that more than 4,400 current and former employees stand to benefit. These workers, spread across firms such as Mariner Wealth Advisors and American Century Companies, said the companies maintained an unspoken ceasefire: don’t hire ours, and we won’t hire yours. The alleged pact stretched from 2012 to 2020 and, according to the lawsuit, violated federal antitrust law.
Some firms had already brushed up against the Justice Department over similar concerns, entering quiet agreements to steer clear of prosecution. One company involved said it was glad to close this chapter and insisted it plays by the rules of genuine competition.
The firms, for their part, denied any misdeeds—but opted to settle rather than slog through years of legal trench warfare. The deal promises immediate relief for workers, avoiding the unpredictable twist of a full trial.
Payouts will vary based on how long each employee worked during the affected years, but lawyers estimate an average check of around $3,700, arriving automatically for those eligible. The legal team representing employees plans to request up to a third of the settlement fund for fees.
The lawsuit—Jakob Tobler et al v. 1248 Holdings LLC—is one more chapter in a broader wave of challenges targeting no-poach practices and wage suppression across American industries, from shipyards to pizza chains to poultry farms. Here, at least, the case ends with a check in the mail and a quiet reminder that even in wealth management, competition for talent has rules of its own.
