Goff v. Walker ex rel. Field

WINTERSHEIMER, Justice.

This appeal is from a judgment based on a jury verdict which found Anna and Thomas Goff liable for a breach of fiduciary duty.

The principal legal issue is whether, in the absence of an adjudication that Thomas Goff was incompetent, the trial judge was under a duty to take steps to protect the interest of Thomas Goff.

In 1981, 83-year-old Eliza Goff Pence Walker appointed Thomas Goff as her attorney-in-fact. In 1986, this action was initiated by Eliza Goff Pence, by and through her guardian alleging that Thomas Goff was no longer competent to manage Eliza’s affairs. In an…