A chartered financial planner has taken a Nottingham-based advice firm - a former St James’s Place partner - to the employment tribunal after joining the firm more than 15 years ago.
A document published earlier this week (February 20) showed Victoria Merrix was claiming against her previous employer, Kingswood Taxation and Wealth Management Limited, on grounds of unfair dismissal.
The firm ceased being an appointed representative of SJP in November 2021, according to the City watchdog’s register.
FTAdviser understands the owner, Kevin Maurice Kingswood, retired that year.
Despite retiring in 2021, Kingswood is still listed as a director at the firm according to Companies House.
The Financial Conduct Authority’s register also shows that both Kingswood and Merrix no longer hold adviser permissions following the firm’s detachment from SJP.
In the tribunal documents, employment judge Adkinson said the advice firm was ordered to write to the tribunal regarding its compliance with the claim made by Merrix.
It warned the firm that if it did not reply, any response to the claim would be struck out.
The order of the tribunal is dated October 3, 2022, and an email was sent to Kingswood Taxation and Wealth Management Limited on January 27, 2023.
The tribunal said it has received no response from the advice firm.
After “noting the lack of compliance and lack of response”, the tribunal decided the firm had not complied with the order.
The judge added: “The response is therefore struck out. The respondent [advice firm] will be entitled to notice of any hearings and decisions of the tribunal but will only be entitled to participate in any hearing to the extent permitted by the employment judge.”
Merrix began working at Kingswood Taxation and Wealth Management Limited back in September 2007, according to her LinkedIn profile.
It is unclear when she stopped working for Kingswood Taxation and Wealth Management Limited.
She also had CF30 permissions for over a year, from January 2009 to November 2010, at Sage Financial Services Limited - a firm which failed back in 2013, according to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Kingswood also worked at Sage Financial Services Limited as an investment adviser in 2007, according to the register.
Kingswood Taxation and Wealth Management Limited was incorporated back in 2003.
Prior to this, owner Kingswood was an investment adviser at St James's Place.
FTAdviser tried to contact both Kingswood and Merrix, but neither was reachable.
SJP declined to comment.
ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com
