Morgan Stanley manager steps down amid complaints against brokers

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley said on Wednesday that Robert Perry, manager for the firm's Beverly Hills, California, wealth management office, has left the firm.

Morgan Stanley spokeswoman Christine Jockle confirmed Perry left the firm but declined to comment further. Attempts to reach Perry at his office by phone and email were unsuccessful.

Perry's departure, reported on Tuesday by the wealth management news website AdvisorHub, comes after a sexual harassment lawsuit was filed earlier this year against one of the top brokers at Perry's Beverly Hills branch.

In March, Lorena Alcantara filed a sexual harassment lawsuit in Los Angeles County against the firm and Michael Ladge, a director in Morgan Stanley's sports and entertainment division whose clients included Katy Perry.

Ladge did not respond to a message requesting comment left at his office.

In a separate lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County court in July 2017, a female broker named Ivy Xiao alleged she was sexually harassed by several managers while working at Morgan Stanley, including while working at the firm's branch in Santa Monica, California.

Perry, as the complex manager, oversaw offices in Century City, Westwood and Santa Monica, in addition to Beverly Hills, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Perry had worked for Morgan Stanley's wealth management business since 1993, when he joined Citigroup's global markets business, a firm Morgan Stanley acquired in 2009.

(Reporting By Elizabeth Dilts in New York; Editing by Dan Grebler)