The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has dismissed a putative class action against the brokerage firm Hornor, Townsend & Kent, holding that, according to the "essence" of the complaint, it's barred by the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act (SLUSA).

The appeals court upheld a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia dismissing the lawsuit, which claimed violations of state law by HTK and its parent company, the Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co.