White v. Hartford Life Insurance Co.

Pursuant to a settlement agreement, William White (plaintiff) was entitled to receive from Hartford Life Insurance Co. (defendant) $800 checks each month for the remainder of his life. In spring 1994, White moved in with his brother and Thelma Simpson, at which address he continued to receive checks from Hartford. Due to his job on the road, however, White arranged for Simpson to deposit the checks on his behalf and open his mail. In March 1995, Simpson informed White that Hartford had sent a letter stating his checks were ending. White did not inquire further with Hartford. Hartford, in fact, continued to mail checks to the address at which White resided with his brother and Simpson, despite the trio’s changes in address. In August 1996, White’s brother and Simpson moved to another address, where Hartford continued to send checks, even though White never resided there. It was not until June 2005 that White discovered his checks had never ended. White filed criminal charges against Simpson and initiated suit against Hartford to collect the sum of the checks that he was entitled to receive under the settlement agreement but never in fact received. On White’s motion for summary judgment, Hartford argued that a genuine issue of material fact existed as to whether White had an agency relationship with Simpson (because the pair had shared a romantic relationship) or whether White otherwise had knowledge of Simpson’s actions.