Transport Insurance Co. v. Faircloth

In Transport Insurance Co. v. Faircloth, 898 S.W.2d 269, 272 (Tex. 1995), a minor's parents were killed in a traffic accident. Later the same day an adjuster met with the minor and a friend of hers to discuss settling her wrongful death claim. The adjuster also recommended attorneys that could represent the minor. The minor actually retained a different attorney, one who was not experienced in wrongful death claims, and the minor's friend was appointed her guardian. The attorney was experiencing financial problems, and the guardian may have sought to profit by his appointment, but the insurer was not aware of either of these circumstances. The claim was settled. Later, when the minor achieved the age of majority, she sued the insurer alleging that it had conspired with her guardian and her attorney to persuade her to settle her claim for less than it was worth. The Court concluded that the existence of a conspiracy could not be inferred from this evidence because there was no indication that the insurer knew of the attorney's and guardian's circumstances or that it was in any way connected with their actions. "In short," the Court said, "no evidence or any inference from it makes a conspiracy conclusion more probable than not." Id.