Equitable Life Assurance Society of United States v. Bruce

157 S.W.2d 522, 203 Ark. 543, 1942 Ark. LEXIS 317
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJanuary 12, 1942
Docket4-6547
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 157 S.W.2d 522 (Equitable Life Assurance Society of United States v. Bruce) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Equitable Life Assurance Society of United States v. Bruce, 157 S.W.2d 522, 203 Ark. 543, 1942 Ark. LEXIS 317 (Ark. 1942).

Opinion

Humphreys, J.

This suit was brought by appellee in the circuit court.of-Jackson county against appellant to recover total and permanent disability benefits under the total and permanent disability clause contained in a policy of insurance in the face amount of $10,000, issued by it to him in 1930 for the consideration of a yearly premium,to be paid by him in the sum of $436.90, which premium included $31.40- for total and permanent disability benefits, alleging* that while the policy was alive and in full force and effect appellee became totally and presumably permanently disabled on April 1, 1940, by reason of angina pectoris and that appellant had failed and refused to pay him $100 per month from the first day of May, and had compelled him to pay the annual premium of $43-6.90 on the dates same became due all being-in violation of the provisions of said policy.

The prayer of the complaint was for judgment in the sum of $100 per month from the first day of May, 1940, and for the sum of $436.90 paid as annual premium, with interest from the date of said payment, for penalty and attorney’s fees and all other proper relief.

Appellant filed an answer denying* that on April 1, 1940, appellee became totally and presumably permanently disabled; that it had refused to comply with the provisions of the policy; that appellee is entitled to recover the-sum of $100 per month from May 1, 1940, and $436.90 paid as an annual premium on the policy; and that appellees is entitled to recover the statutory penalty and attorney.’s fee.

On the 5th day of February, 1941, the cause was sub-mitted to a jury upon the sole issue of whether, under the evidence introduced -by the respective parties, appellee became totally and permanently disabled within the meaning of the disability clause contained in the policy, it being stipulated by counsel that in case the jury should return a verdict that appellee was totally and permanently disabled he would be entitled to recover 'the monthly benefits from May 1, 1940, and that the court might fix the amount of recovery. This stipulation was agreed upon during the course of the trial and put in the record.

Pursuant to the stipulation the court told the jury in instruction No. 3 that it was only called upon to give a “yes” or “no” answer to the question as to whether appellee was totally disabled.

In submitting that issue to the jury the court gave instruction No. 4 to the jury to guide it in determining whether appellee was totally and presumably permanently disabled under the disability clause in the policy, which is as follows: “You are instructed that to recover on the disability clause in the policy, the plaintiff (appellee) Bruce need not be absolutely helpless. He would be considered totally disabled if you believe from a preponderance of the evidence that he is so disabled that it renders him unable to perform the substantial and material acts of his business or occupation in his usual or customary way. And, if you believe, gentlemen, from a preponderance of the testimony that the plaintiff Bruce (appellee) is so disabled from this heart ailment, as he alleges, that it renders him unable to perform substantial and material acts of his business and occupation in his usual and customary way, it would be your duty to find for the plaintiff (appellee); and, unless you so believe it would be your duty to find for the defendant (appellant).”

Appellant objected to the giving of the instruction and excepted and asked that his exceptions be noted of record, which was accordingly done. The clause in the policy defining the term “total disability” as used therein is as follows:

‘ ‘Disability is total when it prevents the insured from engaging in any occupation or performing any work for compensation of financial value.”

This identical clause was involved in the case of. The Equitable Life Assurance Society v. Barton, 192 Ark. 984, 96 S. W. 2d 480, and this court placed the following construction thereon, (quoting syllabus No. 3): “To be totally disabled within the meaning of an insurance policy insuring against such condition, it is not necessary that the insured should be absolutely helpless; he is totally disabled when he is unable to perform the substantial and material acts of his business or occupation in the usual and customary way. ’ ’

It will be observed by reference to instruction No. 4, given and quoted above, that the court followed the interpretation placed upon the identical clause in the case of The Equitable Life Assurance Society v. Barton, supra.

The last expression of this court in construing a similar clause to the one in the policy in the instant case is found in the case of Pacific Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Riffel, 202 Ark. 94, 149 S. W. 2d 57, as follows: “So, here, the controlling consideration is one of fact:—was there substantial testimony to support the jury’s finding that the disease suffered by appellee resulted in continuous, necessary, and total loss of all business time, ‘business time’ meaning ability to engage in sustained effort of a character sufficiently substantial to negative the idea that there was not a total loss of power reasonably to continue the business or profession. In view of Dr. Dibrell’s diagnosis and his prognosis, we think the answer is that there was substantial testimony to sustain the verdict.”

In that case the court upheld an instruction similar to instruction No. 4 given in the instant case. Instruction No. 4, was, therefore, a correct declaration of law applicable to the facts in the instant case.

On the 5th day of February, 1941, the cause was submitted to a jury upon the sole issue-of whether, under the evidence introduced by the respective parties, appellee became totally and permanently disabled within the meaning of the disability clause contained in the policy, it being stipulated by counsel that in case the jury should return a verdict that appellee was permanently and totally disabled he would be entitled to recover the monthly benefits from May 1, 1940, and that the court mig'ht thereafter fix the amount of recovery. This stipulation was agreed to when all the evidence in the case liad been introduced in order that the jury might not be bothered with fixing the commencement date of the monthly payment for disability.

Pursuant to the stipulation the court told the jury in instruction No. 3 that it was only called upon to give a “yes” or “no” answer to the question as to whether appellee was totally disabled.

The jury answered the question “yes” that appellee was totally disabled. The verdict was returned on February 5, 1941, and on February 24, 1941, the court took up the question as to the amount of judgment to be rendered after hearing evidence that the last installment of the annual premium was mailed by appellee to appellant at its Little Rock office on the night of February 5, 1941, which was after the verdict had been rendered.

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Bluebook (online)
157 S.W.2d 522, 203 Ark. 543, 1942 Ark. LEXIS 317, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/equitable-life-assurance-society-of-united-states-v-bruce-ark-1942.