By your letter of June 7, 1991, you request an opinion from the Alabama Judicial Inquiry
Commission concerning whether you are disqualified under the following facts:

As an attorney in private practice before you became a judge, you were retained
by an insurance company to defend J.T. and C.T. in two civil cases involving an
automobile accident. The accident suits were filed against your clients in April
and September of 1990. One case was dismissed in December of 1990, while
you were still in practice. The remaining case is handled by your former law firm.

While both cases were on-going, J.T. filed a civil law suit against E.B. That suit
involves slander of title in connection with E.B.’s collection of a claim against
C.T., and the forced sale of real property in which J.T. and C.T. each had an
undivided one-half interest. That suit also involves abuse of process in that J.T.
had allegedly purchased C.T.’s undivided one-half interest in the property and J.
T. was the sole owner of the property at the time of the sale. The suit is
separate from the accident cases in which you represented J.T. In the suit
against E.B., J.T. is represented by different counsel with whom you had no
association. You never discussed the suit against E.B. with your client, J.T. You
assert no bias for or against J.T.

It is the opinion of the Commission that you are not disqualified from presiding over the
law suit your former client J.T. has filed against E.B. under the above described
circumstances.