03/05/08 - Judge David Hopper will issue a decision in writing that might be terse: "In light of the confidentiality, it may be a one-liner"

Jennifer Hagel Smith, center, the widow of George A. Smith IV, heads to the probate court at Greenwich Town Hall.
(Helen Neafsey/Staff photos)

Widow, parents face off over settlement

By Hoa Nguyen
Greenwich Time - Staff Writer

A year of legal wrangling between the parents of a honeymooner who vanished from a Mediterranean cruise and his widow culminated in a probate hearing that began yesterday at Town Hall.

The parents of George A. Smith IV are fighting a $1 million-plus settlement that his widow, Jennifer Hagel Smith, reached with Royal Caribbean International following his disappearance from a cruise ship on July 5, 2005.

Maureen and George A. Smith III want the estate to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the cruise operator.

The hearing, which is expected to continue today, will include as witnesses, Hagel Smith, mother Maureen Smith, three Miami-based maritime lawyers and a Cheshire economist best known for his work helping Sept. 11, 2001, families determine the economic damages they incurred as a result of the terrorist attacks....