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Appeal to set aside settlement due to lawyer's fraud and lack of capacity approval dismissed.
The appellants appealed the dismissal of their motion to set aside a 2014 consent dismissal and underlying settlement of a personal injury action.
The settlement was negotiated by their former lawyer, who misappropriated the funds and failed to obtain court approval under Rule 7.08 for the injured plaintiff, who was a party under disability.
The Court of Appeal upheld the motion judge's decision, finding she correctly applied the Book factors.
The insurer had acted in good faith without knowledge of the disability, and the settlement itself was not unreasonable.
The court held that the lawyer's fraud did not impugn the reasonableness of the settlement from the perspective of the tort claim.
Motion to set aside unapproved settlement denied despite plaintiff's disability and former lawyer's fraud.
The plaintiffs moved to set aside a dismissal order and a full and final release from a 2013 settlement, arguing the injured plaintiff was under a disability and the settlement was never approved by the court under Rule 7.08.
The plaintiffs' former lawyer had fraudulently settled the action without their knowledge and misappropriated the funds.
The court found the plaintiff was under a disability at the time, but declined to set aside the settlement because the tort insurer acted in good faith, was unaware of the disability, and the settlement itself was not unconscionable.
The motion was dismissed.
