Court Opinion

ID: 9783853
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-30 20:14:12.922508+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:35:38.896070
License: Public Domain

TERRIE LIVINGSTON, Chief Justice,
concurring and dissenting.
I join the majority opinion and judgments in all respects except for the failure to affirm the award of exemplary damages.
The trial court’s amended final default judgment awarded Deartis Preston $414,000 and the final judgment awarded Doris’s estate $180,716.94 in exemplary damages based on its finding of sufficient clear and convincing evidence. In the trial court’s findings of fact and conclusions of law, it found that appellants had breached their fiduciary duties to appellees; that such breaches were committed with an intent to gain benefits and consisted of self-dealing; that appellants conspired with each other in these breaches; that the torts of civil conspiracy and breach of fiduciary duty supported the awards; and that the awards were justified. Furthermore, the trial court found that there was sufficient evidence under the Kraus factors to support the awards by looking to the nature of the wrongful character of the conduct involved, the degree of culpability of the wrongdoers, the situation and sensibilities of the parties concerned, and the extent to which such conduct offends the public’s sense of justice and propriety. See Alamo Nat’l Bank v. Kraus, 616 S.W.2d 908, 910 (Tex.1981). Additionally, the trial court found such awards were not unconstitutionally excessive and comported with the Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code. See id.; Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. § 41.008 (West Supp. 2010); Kraus, 616 S.W.2d at 910. And in its conclusions of law, the trial court concluded that it, as the factfinder, could reasonably form a firm belief or conviction that its findings were true.
Furthermore, because the trial court specifically found that both appellants not only committed a breach of their fiduciary duties but also were in a conspiracy to commit these breaches, I believe there is sufficient evidence of their intent to gain unwarranted benefits and engage in self-dealing. See, e.g., Paradigm Oil, Inc. v. Retamco Operating, Inc., 330 S.W.3d 342, 358 (Tex.App.-San Antonio 2010, pet. filed).
For all of these reasons, I would affirm the part of the trial court’s judgments awarding exemplary damages.