Five years after settling their occupational lung disease claims, 11 Plaintiffs brought suit against our client Tuboscope Vetco International, Inc. and others seeking to set aside the settlements and reopen their claims. Plaintiffs alleged their settlements were part of an unlawful “aggregate settlement” and were void as against public policy. Plaintiffs also alleged that Defendants fraudulently assisted Plaintiffs’ former counsel in improperly obtaining their consent to the settlement. After researching the file’s history, we persuaded the court to abate the case. In an effort to avoid their settlement, Plaintiffs then filed a motion for new trial in the original settled case. Following discovery and a hearing, that motion was denied. On appeal to the First Court of Appeals in Houston, we obtained the affirmance of the trial court’s denial of a new trial, thereby leaving the prior settlements intact. See Authorlee v. Tuboscope, 274 S.W.3d 111 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2008, pet. denied). Plaintiffs’ petition for review was denied by the Texas Supreme Court after full briefing on the merits.
