On
March 31, 2005, four female financial consultants filed a national class
action lawsuit against Smith Barney, the retail brokerage arm of Citigroup,
charging that the brokerage house discriminates against women in violation
of federal and state civil rights and labor laws.
Gender
Discrimination Lawsuit
Against Smith Barney
We are pleased to announce that on May 2, 2008, U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton granted preliminary approval to a settlement of the gender discrimination case against Smith Barney, Amochaev, et al. v. Citigroup Global Markets, Inc. d/b/a Smith Barney, Case No. C- 05-1298 PJH. To read a copy of the Court's order, click
here. Notice of the Settlement will be mailed to the Class Members on May 20, 2008. The Notice and Claim Form will be posted on our website on that day or shortly thereafter. The Notice will set forth in greater detail your rights and options under the settlement. The parties will return to Court on August 13, 2008 to ask the Court for final approval of the settlement.
Plaintiffs
alleged that Smith Barney discriminated against female Financial
Advisors in compensation and business opportunities. The
parties entered into a four-year settlement agreement that
is subject to Court approval. The settlement provides for
comprehensive injunctive relief and significant monetary
relief for the following Settlement Class:
All women employed as Financial Advisors in (i) the United
States branches of Smith Barney’s retail brokerage
division at any time from August 24, 2003 through March 1,
2008 or (ii) the California branches of Smith Barney’s
retail brokerage division at any time from June 25, 2003
through March 1, 2008.
The settlement includes comprehensive injunctive relief regarding account distributions, partnership arrangements, branch manager promotions, retention, diversity training, and complaint processing, among other things. The settlement also provides that an independent Diversity Monitor and an independent Industrial Psychologist will be appointed to effectuate the terms of the Agreement. In addition, the settlement establishes a significant class monetary settlement fund of $33 million plus interest now earning on the fund. We believe this is an excellent resolution of the case for Plaintiffs.
The parties filed their motion seeking
preliminary court approval of the class action settlement on
April 2, 2008. The hearing is scheduled for April 30, 2008.
If the Court grants preliminary approval of the settlement
after April 30th, potential class members will receive a Class
Notice and Claim Form from the Claims Administrator within
20 days of the date the Court grants preliminary approval.
The Class Notice will set forth in greater detail your rights
and options under the settlement.
Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP
(800) 541-7358 (toll-free)
Heather Wong
(615) 313-9000
Beth Alexander
Mehri & Skalet, PLLC
(202)
822-5100
Anna Pohl
Lisa Bornstein
