Conway v. Imperial Life Ins. Co.

5 So. 2d 314, 198 La. 999, 1941 La. LEXIS 1184, 29 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 668
CourtSupreme Court of Louisiana
DecidedNovember 3, 1941
DocketNo. 36098.
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 5 So. 2d 314 (Conway v. Imperial Life Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Conway v. Imperial Life Ins. Co., 5 So. 2d 314, 198 La. 999, 1941 La. LEXIS 1184, 29 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 668 (La. 1941).

Opinion

McCALEB, Justice.

The Imperial Life Insurance Company was an industrial life insurance company organized under the laws of this State and domiciled in the City of Shreveport. As such, it was regularly subjected to an examination of its condition and affairs by the Secretary of State. During the year 1938, the Secretary of State, after making an examination of the company, reached the conclusion that it had failed to comply with the provisions of Act No. 105 of 1898, as amended, and that, because of its unsound financial condition, it was unable to carry out its contracts. Accordingly, on November 17, 1938, he filed a petition in the District Court for the Parish of Caddo, alleging the insolvency of the company and praying for the appointment of a receiver. On the same day that the petition was filed, the company appeared in court and admitted the charges made against it. Whereupon, a judgment was entered by the court appointing one W. N. Hankins as receiver for the company with full power to take possession of defendant’s property and liquidate and settle its affairs.

During the pendency of the receivership proceeding, Guy T. Helvering, Commissioner of Internal Revenue of the United States, levied against Hankins, as receiver of the defendant company, deficiency assessments in a total amount of $41,647.97 for federal income taxes allegedly due by the defendant as transferee of the assets of two companies known as Imperial Protective Union and American Benefit Association. Notices of the deficiency assessments were' duly mailed to the receiver and no proceedings were thereafter taken by him for a redetermination of the taxes by the Board of Tax Appeals of the United States.

On April 19, 1939, Hankins, as receiver, filed in the receivership proceedings a tableau of debts due by the defendant company. In this tableau, he failed to list the United States Government as a creditor of the defendant for the amount of the income taxes which had been assessed against it by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue. On April 28, 1939, the United States appeared in the receivership proceedings and opposed the homologation of -the tableau of debts on the ground that the company was indebted unto it as transferee of the Imperial Protective Union and American Benefit Association in the sum of $41,647.97 representing income taxes due by those companies for the taxable years 1934, 1935, 1936 and 1937.- It further opposed the homologation of the tableau of debts on the ground that it was a creditor of the defendant company in the sum of $1,-364.24 for social security taxes which were assessed against it under the Federal Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C.A. § 301 et seq.

The receiver resisted any and all liability to the United States for' the tax debts and, after a trial of the issues presented by the opposition, judgment was rendered *1008 by the district court recognizing the claim of the ‘United States for social security taxes in the sum of $1,364.24 and rejecting its claim for income taxes. The United States has appealed from the adverse decision and the receiver of the defendant company has answered the. appeal praying that the judgment of the lower court be reversed insofar as it recognizes the Government’s claim for social security taxes.

The claim of the Government for federal income taxes against the defendant as transferee of the Imperial Protective Union and American Benefit Association presents the following questions for decision:

(1) Were the Imperial Protective Union and American Benefit Association properly assessed for tax purposes as regular corporations by the Commissioner .of Internal Revenue or should they be classified as life insurance companies under Section 201(a) of the Federal Revenue Acts of 1934 and 1936, 26 U.S.C.A. Int.Rev.Code, § 201(a)?

(2) If the Imperial Protective Union and American Benefit Association have been rightly assessed as regular corporations, is the Imperial Life Insurance Company liable as transferee of those companies for the taxes claimed, under Section 311 of the Revenue Act of 1936, 26 U.S.C. A. Int.Rev.Code, § 311, and Article 311-1 of Treasury Regulations 94 promulgated thereunder ?

In order that these questions may be intelligently discussed, it is necessary to set forth a brief history of the transferor companies as well as the facts which led up to the levy of the assessments against the defendant. American Benefit Association was organized in 1931 under a certificate of incorporation issued by the State of Colorado. The articles of incorporation state the main purpose of the association to be:

“(a) To pay money benefits to the widows, orphans, heirs and devisees of deceased members of the Association in the amount and to the extent to • which they may be entitled according to the by-laws of the' Association, which shall not be deemed an Insurance Company.”

Imperial Protective Union was organized in 1934 under a certificate of incorporation issued by the State of Delaware. The nature of its business and the object of its organization were stated in the third paragraph of the certificate in the following words:

“To unite reputable men, women and children into a Society for the purpose of giving aid and assistance to widows, widowers and those depending on its deceased members, and to issue life membership certificates either on one member or a life membership certificate covering, the member’s whole family group, which shall provide protection and benefits to its members, heirs and dependents after the natural or accidental death of one of its members, and to further aid its members who become injured or totally disabled, and all such aid to be from voluntary contributions (nothing herein shall be construed as to carrying on the business of an insurance company.”

The nature of the business pursued by these two corporations was practically identical. They were not stock companies *1010 and were theoretically owned and controlled by the insured members. (In truth, they were controlled by one T. L. Morris, who was President, and his brother Hugh Morris, who was Secretary. These men were also the President and Secretary respectively of the defendant Imperial Life Insurance Company.) Membership fees and contributions- or assessments were collected from the members in consideration for policies issued by the associations. The membership fees were payable when the application was made and amounted to $5 per $1,000 of benefits applied for. Policies ranging from $250 to $10,000 in face amount were issued. Regular assessments or premiums were to be collected, without change in rate as long as the policies remained in force. The assessments- or premiums could be paid annually, semi-, annually, -quarterly or monthly. There were provisions for surrendering the policies after 20 years premiums had been paid continuously, when 50 per centum of the value, “determining same as death claims”, would be paid. There were certain other provisions typically found in life insurance policies such as an incontestability clause, double indemnity for accidental death, a reinstatement provision and certain restrictions defining the right of members.

With respect to the American Benefit Association, its books reveal that it undertook to distribute the income received by it from its members in various special fund accounts, i. e. an expense fund, a benefit fund, an administration fund, an exchange fund and a contribution fund.

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Related

Thompson v. Pest Control Commission
75 So. 2d 406 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1954)
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Bluebook (online)
5 So. 2d 314, 198 La. 999, 1941 La. LEXIS 1184, 29 A.F.T.R. (P-H) 668, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/conway-v-imperial-life-ins-co-la-1941.