Cowan & Johnson Summary Judgment Upheld By Court Of Appeals

Becky Cowan obtained summary judgment in a lawsuit filed against a financial consultant and his limited liability company for acts committed by an individual who worked in his office as a life insurance and securities salesman. That individual obtained certain monies from the plaintiff, which the plaintiff claimed were investments with a mutual company the consultant represented. When the plaintiff did not receive any benefitsd from her alleged investments and did not receive them back from the individual upon demand, she sued the consultant and his company for breach of contract. She claimed that the individual acted with actual and apparent authority given to him by the consultant while dealing with her. The trial court granted the motion for summary judgment, and the plaintiff appealed. Whit Johnson argued before the Mississippi Court of Appeals on behalf of the consultant and his company. The Court affirmed the trial court’s grant of summary judgment, holding that no reasonable person would have considered the monies the plaintiff gave to the individual as investments.