A bank’s terminated, 64-year-old senior vice president provided sufficient evidence to survive summary judgment dismissing his age discrimination case, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday, in overturning a lower court ruling and reinstating the litigation. 

Larry Sears was hired by Salt Lake City-based Zions Bancorporation NA, which conducts business as Amegy Bank of Texas, as a senior vice president in 2012, according to Thursday’s ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans in Zions Bancorporation NA, formerly known as ZB NA, doing business as Amegy Bank of Texas. 

In late 2017, the bank began to consider hiring a new manager for Mr. Sears’ Dallas energy lending group, and determined it needed to eliminate one of the four senior vice president positions to make room in the budget for such a manager, the ruling said.  

A bank executive performed an “informal ranking” and decided to eliminate the position of Mr. Sears, who was the oldest of the four senior vice presidents in his group, the ruling said. 

Mr. Sears sued Amegy, alleging he was terminated because of his age. The U.S. District Court in Lubbock, Texas, granted the bank summary judgment dismissing the case. 

It was overturned by a unanimous three-judge appeals court panel. “Here, Sears has produced sufficient evidence to create a dispute of material fact regarding whether he was treated less favorably than younger and similarly situated SVPS,” the ruling said.  

“First, a jury could find” that Mr. Sears and another, 31-year-old senior vice president were similarly situated, it said, adding Mr. Sears attested to the fact that the other senior vice president performed nearly identical job duties based on his resume.  

“A jury could also find that Sears was treated less favorably. Sears, the oldest SVP, was the only SVP selected for termination” and the other senior vice president “not only kept his job but was promoted,” it said.   

The ruling said Amegy “has put forth legitimate reasons for Sear’s termination,” including that it needed to make room in its budget for a new manager.  

However, “That Amegy had abandoned its search for a new manager – the purported impetus for firing Sears - only three months after his termination undermines the bank’s explanation,” the ruling said, in reversing the lower court’s judgment and remanding the case for further proceedings. 

Attorneys in the case did not respond to requests for comment.