The lawsuit was filed in September 2013.

Wells Fargo Advisors has agreed to pay $35.5 million to settle a lawsuit that alleged the firm discriminated against African-American advisors, according to a document filed in the US District Court for the northern district of Illinois.

As part of the settlement, the firm is also required to make a series of programmatic changes to its recruitment and training processes, teaming practices and leadership to enhance diversity and improve opportunities for African-American advisors.

Lance Slaughter, the lead plaintiff on the case, filed the lawsuit in September 2013 in federal court. Slaughter, a financial advisor employed by Wells Fargo Advisors in the Washington DC area since 2005, alleged that of the company's more than 15,000 registered brokers, African-Americans are under-represented in advisor and managerial roles and are paid substantially less than those of different ethinicities. 

Wells Fargo “employs company-wide teaming and account transfer and distribution policies and practices that deny African-Americans the same business opportunities as employees who are not African-American,” the lawsuit alleged. “Wells Fargo’s teaming and account distribution policies and practices exclude African-Americans from lucrative teams and client account distributions and segregate its workforce by race.” 

Linda Friedman of the Chicago-based law firm Stowell & Friedman, Slaughter's attorney, said she is hopeful the settlement will prompt other investment institutions to end discriminatory practices. 

Wells Fargo Advisors denied the allegations but said it agreed to settle the case to avoid elongated litigation. 

“We do not agree with the claims in the lawsuit, but believe that putting this matter behind us is in the best interests of our team members, clients and investors,” Wells Fargo Advisors spokeswoman Helen Bow said in a statement. “Resolving this matter allows Wells Fargo Advisors to continue to focus on providing a diverse and inclusive work environment where all of our team members can thrive through industry leading recruiting, coaching, leadership and business development practices. We will also update our policies and procedures to provide greater opportunities for inclusiveness.”