Lawsuit alleges Commerce Bank denied Black Kansas City man service based on race
A Kansas City man is suing two branches of Commerce Bank in the Kansas City area, alleging that staff at both branches discriminated against him by denying him the opportunity to open business accounts on the basis of his race.
Michael Waller, 64, alleges that he was refused service while attempting to open business accounts at the 6100 Troost Avenue location of Commerce Bank in Kansas City, as well as the 9501 Antioch Rd. location in Overland Park, between June 20 and June 27, 2023.
Waller, who is Black, further alleges that bank employees called police officers to intercept him without cause, as a form of retaliation and intimidation.
Along with Commerce Bank itself, the lawsuit, filed last month in Jackson County court, names branch manager Mary “Jo” Burdett and customer advocate Ann Bronson.
Waller alleges that Burdett, Bronson and other Commerce Bank employees not only refused him service on discriminatory grounds, but took retaliatory action against him after an initial altercation.
Waller’s first visit to Commerce Bank occurred on June 20 at the Overland Park location, where he already maintained a personal bank account, according to court documents. He had hoped to open two bank accounts affiliated with two separate businesses — one involving lawn care and another within the gift industry — but was told he brought improper documentation, court documents read.
After being turned away for improper documentation again on June 21, Waller returned with the requested documents on June 27. When he arrived, a Commerce Bank employee allegedly asked Waller and his fiancé why he couldn’t open an account closer to his east Kansas City home before saying that he could not open an account at the bank at all, court documents read.
Waller alleges that the employee pursued this line of questioning, and refused him service, because Waller and his fiancé are Black. Waller also alleges that the employee did not explain why he was ineligible to open a business account at Commerce Bank.
He further stated in the lawsuit that the employee reported his details to Commerce Bank’s fraud investigation department, allegedly without cause, and that Overland Park police officers were called to the bank as he and his fiancé were leaving.
“Plaintiff was shocked and afraid for his safety and that of his fiancé,” the lawsuit reads.
Waller is the owner of Waller’s Lawn Care Service, LLC, as well as Michael’s Gifts For You, LLC, according to business and property records. He established both LLCs on the day the alleged altercation occurred, records show.
Commerce Bank declined to comment on the details of Waller’s lawsuit but plans to respond with its own series of legal filings, according to representative Tiffany Charles.
“We will respond to Mr. Waller’s claims through the appropriate legal channels where they have been presented,” Charles said.
Attorneys for Waller declined to immediately comment on the pending case.
Several days later, on June 27, Waller went to Commerce Bank’s Troost Avenue location to issue a complaint about the incident at the Overland Park location, and to try again at opening two business accounts, the lawsuit reads. Burdett, the branch manager, allegedly told him that he was not eligible to open business accounts with Commerce Bank at all, as per the bank’s Kansas City investigations department.
Waller alleges that Commerce Bank personnel were unwilling to engage with his complaints about the June 27 incident when he went back to the Overland Park location to close his personal account, nor when he later spoke with Bronson on the phone in an attempt to escalate his complaint.
Waller’s lawsuit refers to the police-involved incident as “outrageous” and alleges that he suffered emotional damages, as well as losing potential business profits due to the resulting delays in his loan process.
“The conduct of Defendants was outrageous and evidenced an evil motive and/or conscious disregard for the rights of Plaintiff and others,” the lawsuit reads.
Waller eventually opened business accounts at another Kansas City bank without issue, the lawsuit reads, and filed a charge of discrimination with the Missouri Commission in November 2023. On August 23, 2024, the Commission issued Waller a notice of right to sue, indicating that commissioners agreed that bank employees had violated his rights.
Attorneys for Commerce Bank applied for a change of judge at the end of November, according to court records.
A case management conference regarding Waller’s lawsuit has been scheduled for March 3, 2025 in Jackson County court.
