Patricia Perez-Coutts has denied any involvement in Westwood Holdings’ alleged lift out of an entire team of AGF investment managers.

Only days after AGF launched a lawsuit against her and the company for “their [alleged] orchestration of an unlawful conspiracy”, the Globe and Mail caught up with her to get comment.

She is both offended and surprised by the accusations, she told the Globe.

AGF claims the recently departing managers breached their employment contracts, and is seeking $10-million in damages. While lift-outs of staff are uncommon in Canada, however, they are widely practiced in the U.S. and Europe.

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