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Cavner, U.S. Bancorp case dismissed

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Two financial institutions that sparred in federal court for more than two years over Springfield adviser Nadia Cavner’s clientele have jointly dismissed the contentious suit, averting an upcoming trial.

The case, filed by U.S. Bancorp Investments Inc. in 2005, was scheduled to go to trial Dec. 3, but U.S. District Judge Richard Dorr issued an Oct. 12 order dismissing the suit and formally withdrawing sanction motions pending against Cavner and co-defendants Steven Clark, Becky Angus, Devona Breeden and Britney Murray. All four worked for Cavner at U.S. Bank and later took jobs with The Signature Bank, also a defendant.

Neither side would confirm nor deny a settlement had been reached.

USBI filed the suit in U.S. District Court in September 2005, just two days after Cavner joined The Signature Bank – now BancorpSouth. The suit alleged that Cavner violated her confidentiality and nonsolicitation agreements by “improperly attempting to lure away” her former U.S. Bancorp clients.

Attorneys for Cavner and her staff have argued that an alleged “inappropriate relationship” between former USBI executives Melissa Gaustad and Steven Short contributed to a toxic work environment – after Cavner reported it – that prompted the defendants to resign and take jobs at a rival bank.

The defendants also filed motions citing U.S. Bancorp’s 2002 hiring of a former Salomon Smith Barney broker in Washington state who copied customer lists for his new employer. When Smith Barney sued U.S. Bancorp, the bank claimed the new broker’s customers would have moved their accounts voluntarily.

Both sides declined to comment on the suit’s dismissal other than to say that the matter had been resolved to the mutual satisfaction of all parties.

In June, Barron’s named Cavner as one of its Top 100 women financial advisers. She placed No. 30 on the 2007 list, with $362 million in assets under management. In 2006, she ranked No. 13 with $300 million in assets under management.

Cavner’s typical account is $500,000, and her typical client’s net worth is $1.5 million, according to research by the magazine.

Click here for a look at past SBJ coverage on the Cavner/U.S. Bancorp suit. See SBJ’s Nov. 12 issue for more on the case’s dismissal.[[In-content Ad]]

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