US brokerage A G Edwards has sought temporary restraining orders against several former employees who now work for Stifel Nicolaus & Co in California, the latest in a string of actions brought against former brokers by A G Edwards, which was acquired by Wachovia on 1 October. The former employees include branch managers, Chris Nielsen and Samuel Slayden, who left this autumn with other advisors on their teams, and John Lee who was AG Edwards' Pacific Coast regional director and oversaw 72 offices. A.G. Edwards alleges all three acted improperly. "We have taken action to date where competing firms have raided branch offices by hiring substantial numbers of employees to one firm, and where employees have inappropriately taken confidential client information," A G Edwards said in an email to Dow Jones Newswires. "AG Edwards has taken action on similar cases in its history and Wachovia Securities will also take legal action where appropriate." A G Edwards also filed suit against four brokers who left to join Morgan Stanley in Florida and two brokers in Houston.