Atwood Vacuum MacHine Co. v. Continental Casualty Co.

246 N.E.2d 882, 107 Ill. App. 2d 248, 1969 Ill. App. LEXIS 1029
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMarch 18, 1969
DocketGen. 52,215
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 246 N.E.2d 882 (Atwood Vacuum MacHine Co. v. Continental Casualty Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Atwood Vacuum MacHine Co. v. Continental Casualty Co., 246 N.E.2d 882, 107 Ill. App. 2d 248, 1969 Ill. App. LEXIS 1029 (Ill. Ct. App. 1969).

Opinion

MR. JUSTICE BURKE

delivered the opinion of the court.

Atwood Vacuum Machine Company brought this action as assignee of nine bills of exchange, after the bills had been presented for payment upon maturity and dishonored, against the twelve named insurance companies which had allegedly joined with an insurance company of Venezuela, Compañía Anónima de Seguros República (República), for the purpose of guaranteeing payment of bills of exchange drawn in Venezuela, among which were the bills at bar. It appears that of the twelve insurance companies named in the original and amended complaints only defendant-appellee, Continental Casualty Company (Continental), was served with summons. República was not joined as a defendant.

The original and the first two amended complaints were stricken on motion of Continental and plaintiff was given leave to file a third amended complaint, which was thereafter filed. The trial court deferred acti<?n on Continental’s motion to strike the third amended complaint pending tender of a fourth amended complaint and a consideration thereof by the court. Leave to file the tendered fourth amended complaint was denied on the ground that none of the four counts therein stated a good cause of action. The court further ordered that plaintiff not be allowed to plead over or amend the third amended complaint, that Continental’s motion to strike the third amended complaint, which was still pending, be allowed, and that the litigation with respect to Continental be terminated as a whole with prejudice to plaintiff and costs to this defendant. Judgment was entered for Continental, and plaintiff prosecutes this appeal.

Count I of the tendered fourth amended complaint alleged generally that between the years 1952 and 1959, business institutions in Venezuela were experiencing difficulties in securing working capital due to a rapidly expanding economy. The count alleged that there developed a procedure and common usage in Venezuela whereby capital was secured by Venezuelan businessmen through the cooperation of small Venezuelan insurance companies and large foreign insurance companies. The procedure and usage was alleged to have been as follows:

An individual Venezuelan businessman would draw a bill of exchange on a nominal drawee and, in order for the bill to acquire value and stability in the money market, its payment was guaranteed by a Venezuelan insurance company. The guaranty on the bill appeared as “bueno por aval” (“good for guarantee”), or an equivalent thereof, written on the bill or on an attached paper, followed by the name of the Venezuelan insurance company granting the aval and the signature of the appropriate officer of that company. However, since the guaranty of the Venezuelan insurance company was not of itself acceptable in the money markets, it was necessary that its aval be backed by well-known, financially reliable foreign insurance companies. It therefore became the practice that the foreign insurance companies would back the individual Venezuelan insurance company, the latter acting for and on behalf of the former in granting the avals.

Count I further alleged that the Venezuelan insurance company and the foreign insurance companies involved in any particular such association shared premiums and risks in accordance with previously agreed fixed percentages. It was the custom of the brokers and investors in the Venezuelan money markets to inquire of and receive the names of the insurance companies. Venezuelan and foreign alike, which were participating in the guaranty on a particular bill of exchange, as well as the respective percentage interests each participating insurance company had in the guaranty or aval.

The individual Venezuelan businessman would secure repayment of the bill of exchange by depositing securities or executed mortgages with the Venezuelan insurance company granting the aval. A brokerage firm was then engaged to sell the bill to an investor and the proceeds thereof went to the businessman as working capital. When the bill fell due, it would be repaid by the businessman out of funds paid to him by the Venezuelan government for completing his contract as previously agreed. Count I further alleged that all of the defendant companies herein were aware and knew of this custom and procedure, and also knew that those dealing in the Venezuelan money markets would follow this practice.

Count I further alleged that until late 1959, no losses were incurred by any of the insurance companies participating in such ventures in Venezuela. In March 1955 República, a small insurance company, was organized to engage in the guaranty operations detailed above. During June 1955, Sterling Offices of Toronto, Canada, organized a group of foreign insurance companies to participate with República, under various forms of business associations, in the business of guaranteeing bills of exchange in Venezuela.

In July 1958, Sterling notified República of a change in the makeup of the foreign participating insurance companies. República was informed that defendants herein were the new participating foreign insurance companies which would act in conjunction with República in guaranteeing bills of exchange, and that the premiums and losses would be shared as follows:

Continental Casualty Company 10%
The Guild Hall 10%
Munich Reinsurance, A. G. 10%
Reinsurance Corporation 10%
Store Brand 10%
República 10%
Atlas Reinsurance 7.5%
Globe Reinsurance 7.5%
British National 5%
British & Overseas 5%
The Great Lakes 5 %
Northern Assurance Co. 5%
The Victory Insurance Co. 5%

Count I further generally alleged that in 1957, Seth B. Atwood, plaintiff’s assignor, traveled to Caracas, Venezuela, and investigated the financing operations detailed above. Atwood and two of his associates conferred with officers of a number of Venezuelan insurance companies, as well as with the manager of a New York bank operating in Caracas. It was alleged that all of those consulted described the Venezuelan financing operations as detailed above.

The count further alleged that on October 27, 1957, Seth B. Atwood began to purchase bills of exchange, as guaranteed in the manner set out above. It was alleged that prior to each purchase, Atwood inquired as to the identity of the Venezuelan insurance company granting the aval, and also secured representations as to the participating foreign insurance companies. In the case of the bills of exchange at bar, plaintiff’s assignor was advised by República that the defendants were the participating foreign insurance companies. Between October 27,1957, and August 12, 1959, Atwood purchased approximately $2,900,000 worth of bills of exchange, all of which were honored in full at maturity.

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Bluebook (online)
246 N.E.2d 882, 107 Ill. App. 2d 248, 1969 Ill. App. LEXIS 1029, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/atwood-vacuum-machine-co-v-continental-casualty-co-illappct-1969.