A woman who signed a million-dollar settlement agreement in a personal injury case that was never delivered to the opposing side and then backed out of the settlement after hiring a new lawyer is not bound by the settlement and does not have to pay her original lawyer his one-third contingency fee, a divided state appellate panel ruled yesterday.
The 4-1 Appellate Division, First Department, panel ruled in Gyabaah v. Rivlab Transportation, 307081/10, that even though the woman, Adwoa Gyabaah, signed general release and hold-harmless agreements in connection with the settlement, the settlement never took effect. The unsigned majority opinion was joined by Justices Peter Tom, Dianne Renwick, Leland DeGrasse and Sheila Abdus-Salaam.
